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by Zahid Rafiq
In eleven stories, The World With Its Mouth Open follows the inner lives of people in Kashmir as they walk the uncertain terrain of their days, fractured from years of war.
From a shopkeeper's encounter with a mannequin, to an expectant mother walking on a precarious road, to a young boy wavering between dreams and reality, to two dogs wandering the city, these stories weave in larger, devastating themes of loss, grief, violence, longing, and injustice with the threads of smaller, everyday realities that confront the characters' lives in profound ways. Although the stories circle the darker aspects of life, they are―at the same time―an attempt to run into life, into humor, into beauty, into another person who can offer refuge, if momentarily.
Zahid Rafiq's The World With Its Mouth Open is an original and powerful debut collection announcing the arrival of a new voice that bears witness to the human condition with nuance, heart, humor, and incredible insight.
"Stunning... . In understated but lyrical prose, these stories reveal moments of beauty―a box decorated with poppies, the yellow silk lining of a ruined suitcase―amid overpowering loss. Recommend to fans of Arundhati Roy and Salman Rushdie." ―Booklist (starred review)
"Rafiq's piercing debut collection takes a harsh look at the lives of people in Kashmir...[He] artfully peels back the layers of his characters' emotions, exposing raw truths and complex entanglements...These revelatory stories leave a mark." —Publishers Weekly
"Rafiq writes crisply and tenderly, with occasional flashes of humor and exquisite attention to the trials of day-to-day life." ―Kirkus Reviews
"Resounding... . offers 11 stories that distill quotidian moments–a walk, job search, new neighbors–into opportunities for deep insight... . Hauntingly astute, Rafiq is a storyteller to watch–and closely read." ―Shelf Awareness
"Violence runs riverlike beneath Zahid Rafiq's gorgeously restrained sentences: these are visionary tales shot through with longing and grief. Rafiq writes with gentle humor and profound grace, showing such compassion for the ways we are, all of us, so shabbily and persistently human. An utterly exquisite debut." ―Emily Fridlund, author of History of Wolves
"The World With Its Mouth Open is a brilliant debut collection, both restrained and revelatory. In eleven meticulously crafted stories, Zahid Rafiq details the human mechanics of modern-day Kashmiri life. There is so much of the world here, rendered in small intimate moments of grief, violence, humor, and wanting, every sentence taut as a tendon. Rafiq is a writer of considerable talent, and this collection marks the beginning of what will be a marvelous literary career." ―Omar El Akkad, author of What Strange Paradise
"A born storyteller doesn't flinch from the beauty or the terror of the everyday. The World With Its Mouth Open is shot through with wonder and awe at how the humble story truly opens up the entire world. A fearless, outstanding collection." ―Manuel Muñoz, author of The Consequences
This information about The World With Its Mouth Open was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Zahid Rafiq is a writer living in Srinagar, Kashmir. He was a journalist for several years before turning to writing fiction. The World With Its Mouth Open is his first book.
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