Hijab - General Discussion

kimindex · 16-06-2005, 15:24

I have called the thread 'Hijab' because I've just heard this author on the radio and it seems she is trying to communicate how it feels to be a wearer of the Hijab.

I just wondered if anyone has read any of her books and whether they're worth reading? The synopsis makes it sound just like a love story and that's not really what I want to read.

Minaret ~ Leila Aboulela --

In her Muslim hijab, with her down-turned gaze, Najwa is invisible to most eyes, especially to the rich families whose houses she cleans. Twenty years ago, Najwa, then at university in Khartoum, would never have imagined that one day she would be a maid. An upper class westernised Sudanese, her dreams were to marry well and raise a family. Then a coup forces the young woman and her family into political exile in London. The years that follow hold more trials for Najwa and the realization that she has come down in the world. But she finds solace - in her visits to the Regents Park Mosque, the companionship among the Muslims she meets there and strength in the hijab she adopts. Her dreams of love may have shattered but her awakening to Islam has given her a different peace. Then Najwa meets Tamer, the intense, lonely younger brother of her employer. They find a common bond in faith and slowly, silently, begin to fall in love

Ixitxachitl · 16-06-2005, 16:14

To be honest, it doesn't sound entirely like "my cup of tea", but all the same it sounds like a moving story.
Maybe others will be able to identify with Leilas situation and it may do very well. Perhaps I'm denying any identification with the main character in the synopsis. Perhaps I could identify with being segregated, forced away from those I care for and pushed into an alien environment where the only way to survive is to adapt myself to my situation...

Well now I've been thinking about it, when the situations are taken out of context it sounds very good indeed, and I may have to look for more info on this.

Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

kimindex · 16-06-2005, 16:17

She's written other books and they all seem to have a strong romantic theme but, so what, I suppose. Perhaps I should risk it.

Ixitxachitl · 16-06-2005, 16:20

Well if you do, please post or PM me what it's like.

Thankies in advance.

jmclaugh · 16-06-2005, 16:23

Never heard of her but I think I'll pass on what sounds like an Islamic Mills & Boon.

kimindex · 16-06-2005, 16:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmclaugh

Never heard of her but I think I'll pass on what sounds like an Islamic Mills & Boon.

It does sound like it, doesn't it? She sounded much more serious on the radio (but I was also watching the cricket and working at the same time).

jmclaugh · 16-06-2005, 16:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by kimindex

It does sound like it, doesn't it? She sounded much more serious on the radio (but I was also watching the cricket and working at the same time).

Bloody hell you sure can multi-task.

kimindex · 16-06-2005, 16:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmclaugh

Bloody hell you sure can multi-task.

I was also doing keepy uppies with my feet and head.

kimindex · 16-06-2005, 16:38

This is more about her with an excerpt:

About the Author
LEILA ABOULELA was born in Khartoum, Sudan and came to Britain in her twenties to study at the London School of Economics. Her first novel, 'The Translator', was long-listed for the Orange Prize and the IMPAC Dublin Award, and short-listed for the Saltire Prize. BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour will be serialising a drama adaptation of 'The Translator' in 2002.

Excerpted from Coloured Lights by Leila Aboulela.

I cried a little as the bus started to fill up with people in Charing Cross Road and passed the stone lions in Trafalgar Square. Not proper crying with sobs and moans but a few silly tears and water dribbling from my nose. It was not the West Indian conductor who checked my pass that day but a young boy who looked bored. The West Indian conductor is very friendly with me; he tells me that I look like one of his daughters and that he wants to visit the Sudan, to see Africa for the first time. When I tell him of our bread queues and sugar coupons, he looks embarrassed and leaves me to collect the fares of other passengers. I was crying for Taha or maybe because I was homesick, not only for my daughters or my family but sick with longing for the heat, the sweat and the water of the Nile. The English word 'homesick is a good one; we do not have exactly the same word in Arabic. In Arabic my state would have been described as 'yearning for the homeland' or the 'sorrow of alienation' and there is also truth in this. I was alienated from this place where darkness descended unnaturally at 4pm and people went about their business as if nothing had happened.

batgirl · 16-06-2005, 17:23

I like the way she writes.

kimindex · 17-06-2005, 08:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by batgirl

I like the way she writes.

Do you reckon I should buy it? She can't be that Mills & Boony if she's been listed for all those prizes, can she? But the Orange Prize is for romantic fiction, isn't it? (Indecisive smiley).

Edit: checked. The Orange Prize is for woman writing in English. These people have won it (didn't know Lionel could be a woman's name!):

Previous winners:

1996: Helen Dunmore - A Spell of Winter
1997: Anne Michaels - Fugitive Pieces
1998: Carol Shields - Larry's Party
1999: Suzanne Berne - A Crime in the Neighborhood
2000: Linda Grant - When I Lived in Modern Times
2001: Kate Grenville Picador - The Idea of Perfection
2002: Ann Patchett - Bel Canto
2003: Valerie Martin - Property
2004: Andrea Levy - Small Island
2005: Lionel Shriver - We Need to Talk about Kevin

kimindex · 17-06-2005, 08:27

I've put it on my Wish List and, having looked at the 2005 winner on Amazon, I've ordered that. That sounds very interesting.

batgirl · 18-06-2005, 11:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by kimindex

I've put it on my Wish List and, having looked at the 2005 winner on Amazon, I've ordered that. That sounds very interesting.

I'm getting it too. Maybe we can have a 'book club' thread.

ZipGypsy · 18-06-2005, 16:18

I fancy this book too. Not sure about the writing style from the excerpt, but I'm really interested in the subject matter.

I think the idea of a book club is great. I asked for a separate section on 'Books' some time ago, but DS said 'no'.

Given the threads on music, I don't see why not. Anyway. I'd be so up for discussing books.

16-06-2005, 15:24	#1
kimindex Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Cornwall (ex-London) Posts: 40,038	Hijab I have called the thread 'Hijab' because I've just heard this author on the radio and it seems she is trying to communicate how it feels to be a wearer of the Hijab. I just wondered if anyone has read any of her books and whether they're worth reading? The synopsis makes it sound just like a love story and that's not really what I want to read. Minaret ~ Leila Aboulela -- In her Muslim hijab, with her down-turned gaze, Najwa is invisible to most eyes, especially to the rich families whose houses she cleans. Twenty years ago, Najwa, then at university in Khartoum, would never have imagined that one day she would be a maid. An upper class westernised Sudanese, her dreams were to marry well and raise a family. Then a coup forces the young woman and her family into political exile in London. The years that follow hold more trials for Najwa and the realization that she has come down in the world. But she finds solace - in her visits to the Regents Park Mosque, the companionship among the Muslims she meets there and strength in the hijab she adopts. Her dreams of love may have shattered but her awakening to Islam has given her a different peace. Then Najwa meets Tamer, the intense, lonely younger brother of her employer. They find a common bond in faith and slowly, silently, begin to fall in love

16-06-2005, 16:14	#2
Ixitxachitl Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Way over the line Services: Pipex BB Posts: 358	To be honest, it doesn't sound entirely like "my cup of tea", but all the same it sounds like a moving story. Maybe others will be able to identify with Leilas situation and it may do very well. Perhaps I'm denying any identification with the main character in the synopsis. Perhaps I could identify with being segregated, forced away from those I care for and pushed into an alien environment where the only way to survive is to adapt myself to my situation... Well now I've been thinking about it, when the situations are taken out of context it sounds very good indeed, and I may have to look for more info on this. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

16-06-2005, 16:17	#3
kimindex Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Cornwall (ex-London) Posts: 40,038	She's written other books and they all seem to have a strong romantic theme but, so what, I suppose. Perhaps I should risk it.

16-06-2005, 16:20	#4
Ixitxachitl Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Way over the line Services: Pipex BB Posts: 358	Well if you do, please post or PM me what it's like. Thankies in advance.

16-06-2005, 16:23	#5
jmclaugh Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Oxfordshire Services: OH Posts: 11,243	Never heard of her but I think I'll pass on what sounds like an Islamic Mills & Boon.

16-06-2005, 16:38	#9
kimindex Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Cornwall (ex-London) Posts: 40,038	This is more about her with an excerpt: About the Author LEILA ABOULELA was born in Khartoum, Sudan and came to Britain in her twenties to study at the London School of Economics. Her first novel, 'The Translator', was long-listed for the Orange Prize and the IMPAC Dublin Award, and short-listed for the Saltire Prize. BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour will be serialising a drama adaptation of 'The Translator' in 2002. Excerpted from Coloured Lights by Leila Aboulela. I cried a little as the bus started to fill up with people in Charing Cross Road and passed the stone lions in Trafalgar Square. Not proper crying with sobs and moans but a few silly tears and water dribbling from my nose. It was not the West Indian conductor who checked my pass that day but a young boy who looked bored. The West Indian conductor is very friendly with me; he tells me that I look like one of his daughters and that he wants to visit the Sudan, to see Africa for the first time. When I tell him of our bread queues and sugar coupons, he looks embarrassed and leaves me to collect the fares of other passengers. I was crying for Taha or maybe because I was homesick, not only for my daughters or my family but sick with longing for the heat, the sweat and the water of the Nile. The English word 'homesick is a good one; we do not have exactly the same word in Arabic. In Arabic my state would have been described as 'yearning for the homeland' or the 'sorrow of alienation' and there is also truth in this. I was alienated from this place where darkness descended unnaturally at 4pm and people went about their business as if nothing had happened.

16-06-2005, 17:23	#10
batgirl Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: the cleaning cupboard Services: cats Posts: 14,424	I like the way she writes.

17-06-2005, 08:27	#12
kimindex Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Cornwall (ex-London) Posts: 40,038	I've put it on my Wish List and, having looked at the 2005 winner on Amazon, I've ordered that. That sounds very interesting.

18-06-2005, 16:18	#14
ZipGypsy Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Watching wind farms Posts: 22,414	I fancy this book too. Not sure about the writing style from the excerpt, but I'm really interested in the subject matter. I think the idea of a book club is great. I asked for a separate section on 'Books' some time ago, but DS said 'no'. Given the threads on music, I don't see why not. Anyway. I'd be so up for discussing books.