Bookversations
By Suad and Myrihla
BookversationsSep 16, 2018
In The Early Hours - Getting to Know and Love Prophet Muhammad PBUH
Belated Ramadan Mubarak to our Muslim listeners! In this episode, we continue with the fourth chapter of In The Early Hours By Khurram Murad.
We discuss falling in love with the Seerah, desiring the Prophet's company in the Hereafter and challenges of being Muslim in today's society.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
In The Early Hours - Ditch Toxic Positivity For Gratefulness
In this episode, we continue with the third chapter of In The Early Hours By Khurram Murad. We discuss the traits that help us to hold unto Allah and what distances us from Him.
We also touch on the difference between Gratefulness and Toxic Positivity and why the difference actually matters.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
If I Had Your Face & The Picture of Dorian Gray - Unrealistic Beauty Standards In The Age of Social Media
This episode is inspired by Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' and Frances Cha's 'If I Had Your Face'. We discuss unrealistic beauty standards in the age of social media, whether we've ever considered plastic surgery and how much society influences our perception of beauty.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: Chapter 3 of In The Early Hours by Khurram Murad
Don't Touch My Hair By Emma Dabiri - Baby Hair Bondage, Cultural Appropriation and The Natural Hair Movement
This episode is inspired by Emma Dabiri's 'Don't Touch My Hair,' a book on why black hair matters and how it can be viewed as a blueprint for decolonisation.
We talk about the rise of the Natural Hair movement, impact of representation in the media and the ever topical issue of Cultural Appropriation.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
In The Early Hours - Remembrance of Allah
In this episode, we continue with the second chapter of In The Early Hours By Khurram Murad. We discuss different forms of remembrance, the impact of Salah when done right and our favourite daily adhkars.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
The Beekeeper Of Aleppo By Christy Lefteri - The Tory Web Of Lies On The Refugee Crisis
This episode is inspired by The Beekeeper of Aleppo, a novel that deals with the flight of refugees from Aleppo in Syria to Europe during the Syrian Civil War. We discuss the implications of the Nationality and Borders bill, future consequences of political apathy and the different ways our body and mind deal with trauma.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: In The Early Hours (Chapter 2)
Born A Crime By Trevor Noah - My Mother Taught Me What School Didn't
This episode's conversation is inspired by Trevor Noah's 'Born A Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood'. We discuss lessons from apartheid and parenting lessons from Patricia Noah.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri
Insta Live Monthly Round Up - Jan 2022
This episode is an extract from an hour long insta live on Bookversations.
At the end of every month, we’ll be hosting a live on the Bookversations Instagram page to recap all the books we’ve read and interact with you at the same time!
We want to know what books you’re reading, your thoughts on our episodes and everything in between.
Books Mentioned: Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot By Mikki Kendall, Grown by Tiffany D.Jackson, Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo, House of Stone by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma, How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa, Homesick for Another World by Ottessa Moshfegh and At Night All Blood is Black by David Drop.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram @bookversations for more book reviews.
In The Early Hours By Khurram Murad - My Confidence Comes From Allah And That’s Why No One Can Break It
Introducing a monthly Bookversations segment where we discuss Islamic Books. Think of it as a Book Club. In this episode, we delve into the first chapter of In The Early Hours By Khurram Murad. We discuss cultivating self awareness, getting rid of all or nothing mentality and finding unshakeable confidence through Tawakkul.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Second Class Citizen by Buchi Emecheta - Women Are Not Commercial Goods
Buchi Emecheta’s Second Class Citizen was the perfect opportunity for us to discuss some of the wild statements we see on social media about women. We discuss how women can uphold patriarchy, the importance of choosing the right partner and finding hope in difficult situations.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: In The Early Hours by Khurram Murad (Chapter 1)
The Defining Decade By Meg Jay - How To Make The Most Of Your Twenties With Olamide
This episode's conversation is inspired by Dr Meg Jay's 'The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter And How to Make the Most of Them Now.'
We are joined by Olamide A, software engineer and fitness extraordinaire.
We talk about:
Why it's worth trying out different things in your 20's, the importance of mentors and asking for help, keystone habits that transformed our 20's and being intentional about love.
As always, we're excited to hear your thoughts! Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com or drop us a message here: https://anchor.fm/bookversations/message
Follow us on Instagram for more book reviews.
Next Bookversations Read: Second Class Citizen By Buchi Emecheta
Transcendent Kingdom By Yaa Gyasi - Lifting The Veil On Addiction And Depression
This episode's conversation is inspired by Yaa Gyasi's 'Transcendent Kingdom', a novel about the life of a Ghanaian immigrant family ravaged by depression, addiction and grief. We talk about mental illness, how faith impacts seeking help, dealing with spiritual wounds caused by hostile places of worship and healing from past trauma.
Next month will be a Ramadan edition of Bookversations. And we're excited to share the launch of our Ramadan Journal with you all.
Click on this link to find out more.
Next Bookversations Read: In The Early Hours by Khurram Murad
Accepted Whispers - Don't Worry About The How, Just Ask (How Dua Can Transform Our Lives)
This episode's conversation is inspired by Accepted Whispers, a collection of over 200 duas from the Quran and Hadith for daily reading.
We catch up on Ramadan and the importance of seeking forgiveness in the last 10 days. We share our favourite duas from the Quran, the one thing that changed our dua game forever and tips/advice for people who are struggling with making dua. We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, email us your thoughts at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Intimations By Zadie Smith - PMS And A Post Covid World
This episode's conversation is inspired by 'Intimations', a collection of personal essays by Zadie Smith. We talk about the challenges of working during Covid, PMS, our love for essays and our biggest lessons from the pandemic. We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, email us your thoughts at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Next Bookversations Read: Transcendent Kingdom By Yaa Gyasi
The Obstacle Is The Way By Ryan Holiday - Have Self Help Books Run Their Course?
This episode's conversation is inspired by Ryan Holiday's 'The Obstacle Is The Way.' We discuss issues with self-help books, outgrowing books and practical tips on how to overcome adversity. We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, email us your thoughts at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Next Bookversations Read: Intimations By Zadie Smith
Travellers By Helon Habila - The Untold Stories Of Black Migrants
This episode's conversation is inspired by 'Travellers', a novel by Helon Habila which explores the interconnected experiences of migrants. In this episode, Suad shares her experience of feeling unsafe in Berlin, we discuss the importance of empathy, what makes a good ally and how we can make a difference in the world. We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, email us your thoughts at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Next Bookversations Read: The Obstacle Is The Way By Ryan Holiday
The Ruthless Elimination Of Hurry - How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World
In this episode, we discuss John Mark Comer's, 'The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry,' focusing on issues with productivity culture. We talk about the impact of capitalism on our attitude towards time, burn-out and practical tips to slow down and find more joy in our lives. We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, email us your thoughts at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie - Radicalisation, Politics and Divided Loyalties
This episode's conversation is inspired by Kamila Shamsie's, 'Home Fire', a reworking of Antigone, a tragic greek play written by Sophocles. Set in contemporary London, Home Fire is the tale of two British families, intertwined by fate. Dealing with issues of terrorism, faith and love, Home Fire explores what it means to be loyal to a state.
We discuss the issue of placing too much expectation on authors who write about Muslim characters and what Capitol Hill has made glaring about radicalisation and terrorism.
We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, we would love to hear your feedback and comments at bookversationspod@gmail.com
The next Bookversations will be on: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World) by John Mark Comer
Love In Colour By Bolu Babalola - Relating To Love Stories As Black Muslim Women
In this episode, we discuss Bolu Babalola’s debut anthology ‘Love In Colour.’ We share our thoughts on the importance of a book cover, our initial perception of romance genre, Hollywood's impact on our perception of love and the difficulties of relating to love stories as Muslim women.⠀⠀
Fact-checking references⠀
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African Books Have The Same Covers - https://qz.com/207527/the-reason-every-book-about-africa-has-the-same-cover-and-its-not-pretty/⠀
Male Authors Writing Female Characters - https://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/03/the-mixed-results-of-male-authors-writing-female-characters/273641/⠀
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We hope you enjoy the episode and as always, we would love to hear your feedback and comments at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Our Favourite Reads From 2020
This episode was recorded early last year but it was never released. We are currently recording new episodes and we're excited to start sharing our love for books with you again. In the meantime, we hope you enjoy this episode as we share some of our favourite reads from 2020. We talk Muslim romance books, lack of representation in the publishing industry and what it means to be an activist. We end on a discussion of Right-wing ideology based on Douglas Murray's 'The Strange Death of Europe'. As always, we would love to hear your feedback and comments at bookversationspod@gmail.com
Fact-checking notes
- We mentioned that 90% of people in the UK publishing industry are white, according to the latest survey, the figure is 85%. You can read more here: https://www.publishers.org.uk/publications/diversity-survey-of-the-publishing-workforce-2019/
- In reference to the proportion of BAME health workers impacted by COVID. We incorrectly mentioned it was 90% overall. The breakdown of the figures can be found in the GM Journal. 'Figures from the British Medical Association in June showed that although only 21% of all staff are BAME, 63% of healthcare workers who died were from an ethnic group. Of this, 64% of nurses and 95% of doctors who died were BAME.' https://www.gmjournal.co.uk/what-is-the-science-behind-the-disproportionate-impact-of-covid-19-on-bame-groups
Anthills Of The Savannah - What is the Role of a Writer in Society?
The Wait - Is Religion Anti-Sex?
When Breath Becomes Air - What Makes Life Meaningful?
Americanah - Blackness, Immigration and Love
Daring Greatly By Brene Brown – What's Worth Doing Even If You Fail?
Ghana Must Go – Compromise vs Sacrifice in Marriage
Teaser: Introduction x Purple Hibiscus
Email us at bookversationspod@gmail.com.