![]() ![]() There were several moments that really grabbed me or even made me laugh out loud, not so much because of their humor (although there was plenty of that too), but just because of how true they felt. Many of these, being specific to the experience of being Muslim in North America, are rarely represented in literature, and even more rarely represented in literature that’s actually any good. There’s something particularly lovely about reading a novel with so many resonating experiences. The novel also ties in an impressive range of political issues, reflected in local community relations (Sunni-Shi’a tensions within the Muslim community, and KKK violence and other racism directed at the Muslim community from some others in the city) as well as international issues (the Iranian revolution, the occupation of Palestine, the dictatorship in Syria, etc.) ![]() ![]() Covering a long time span and a variety of geographic locations, the novel follows Khadra’s religious paths, from being the daughter of a Dawah Center worker, through a “surge of religious austerity” in her early teens, a “neoclassical phase” of traditional learning as she gets older, a sense of disillusionment and uncertainty as she comes to question the monolithic image of Islam she grew up with, and ultimately a reconciliation of sorts as she comes to feel more comfortable in her own religious path while appreciating the community where she was raised. ![]()
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