This book felt like it took several turns; spoilers ahead. It begins with Isma, a British girl trying to enter the US on a student visa, getting profiled for her Pakistani heritage; once in Boston she is delighted to meet Eamonn, another Londoner, but realizes to her dismay that he’s the son of a prominent UK politician whose advice to fellow Muslims is to assimilate as smoothly as possible. Just when you think this might going to be a story about young love finding a way to build tolerance, the story abruptly pivots away from Isma and focuses on Aneeka, her prettier sister back in the UK, whose photo had caught Eamonn’s eye to the point that he goes back to the UK to hit on her, after which they begin a hugely problematic relationship. BUT THEN the story pivots once more to Aneeka’s twin brother Parvaiz, and we get flashbacks to how he was groomed to follow in their dead father’s footsteps towards terrorism. Everything comes to a massively dramatic conclusion. The story has some really poignant things to say about holding true to one’s culture and religion, and how hard Western society bullies Muslims when they don’t conform to cultural norms, but it all gets somewhat lost in the weird structure of the story.
Tag: author-kamila shamsie
The Djinn Falls in Love & Other Stories, ed. Mahvesh Murad, Jared Shurin
There are some big names in here (Nnedi Okorafor, Neil Gaiman) and some that I love but may not be so famous (Amal El-Mohtar, Claire North, Saad Z. Hossain), but for me the standout stories were by authors I hadn’t previously encountered. “Reap” by Sami Shah is written from the viewpoint of a drone operator who is surveilling the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, and who begins to witness some freaky supernatural goings-on. It’s brilliant, combining frightening djinn behavior with the weird disconnection of war at a distance, and the feeling of being under threat by forces you can’t comprehend. I’d give second place to “The Congregation” by Kamila Shamsie, a gorgeous and spiritual piece about longing and brotherhood. Honorable mention to “Duende 2077” by Jamal Mahjoub, in which an exorcist is called to visit a haunted spaceship. Mostly a strong collection, put together in a way that started out whimsical and got really creepy towards the end.