"Now Sohail wonders if he should have reserved a little pity for these men. He feels the tug of an earlier self, a still-soft self: geographer, not guerrilla.[...] It is the softer self who leads him to explore the room behind the munitions store, who slides open the heavy metal door, who palms the wall, searching for a light switch - who is met with a sight that will continue to suck the breath out of him for a lifetime to come."
From The Good Muslim by Tahmima Anam
Tahmima Anam (*1975)
Tahmima Anam was a complete unknown writer to me. Never heard nor read anything of or by her. When I bought the ticket to see Hanan Al-Shaykh, Tahmima was the complementary author that evening. Young Tahmima was sitting rather shy and demure next to Hanan, obviously acknowledging Hanan's status. But the minute Tahmima reacted to Hanan's recollection of her mother's accusation (see also 'Quote of the Month - April 2012), Tahmima became more and more involved and stronger in her appearance. Having listened to her carefully, Tahmima certainly gained her place next to Hanan.
Tahmima Anam was born in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Her father, Mahfuz Anam, is the editor and publisher of The Daily Star who also worked as a media expert for the UNESCO. Consequently, Tahmima grew up in Paris, New York City and Bangkok. During those years she completed her education in the US where she earned a PhD as anthropologist from Harvard University. Nevertheless, it seems as if her family's background - her own father being editor, her grandfather, Abul Mansur Ahmed, a well-known writer - tugged at her eventually. She turned to writing, completing in 2005 a creative writing course at the University of London with a Master of Arts. Her first novel, A Golden Age was published in 2007 revolving around the Bangladesh Liberation War. The theme echoes in her second novel, The Good Muslim, thus making both books sequels of a "projected trilogy" (Ophelia Field, The Daily Telegraph (11/05/2011)). When Tahmima was interviewed at the EdBookFest, she referred to the 'wounds that war leaves on souls' and its damaging effect. Her own family, both parents and grandparents were closely involved in the Liberation War. What happens to people that are/were involved in a war? How does war influence their future? And how come that, as in The Good Muslim, even years after a war ended families are still fractured? Both her books, A Golden Age and The Good Muslim won Tahmima serious literary prizes. Her style is being described as 'gripping' and 'mesmerizing', her latest novel reviewed as being "a timely drama about the unpredictable effects of religious zealotry and political violence as well as a keen examination of survival and forgiveness" (Valerie Miner, LA Times (14/08/2011)). Probably, we will hear more from her, if not at least read about the third sequel; keep an eye on her - she's certainly worth it!
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