Leila Aboulela''s American debut is a provocative, timely, and
engaging novel about a young Muslim woman -- once privileged and
secular in her native land and now impoverished in London --
gradually embracing her orthodox faith. With her Muslim hijab and
down-turned gaze, Najwa is invisible to most eyes, especially to
the rich families whose houses she cleans in London. Twenty years
ago, Najwa, then at university in Khartoum, would never have
imagined that one day she would be a maid. An upper-class
Westernized Sudanese, her dreams were to marry well and raise a
family. But a coup forces the young woman and her family into
political exile in London. Soon orphaned, she finds solace and
companionship within the Muslim community. 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.
Written with directness and force, Minaret is a lyric and
insightful novel about Islam and an alluring glimpse into a culture
Westerners are only just beginning to understand.
關於作者:
Leila Aboulela was born in 1964 and grew up in Khartoum. She
is the author of two books: a novel, The Translator which was
published to critical acclaim in 1999 and a book of short stories,
Coloured Lights published in 2000. Leila Aboulela lives between
Jakarta and Aberdeen.