Drunk on Ink Q & A with Saadia Faruqi and ‘Meet Yasmin’
Drunk on Ink is a blast interview series by Soniah Kamal author of the novel Unmarriageable a parallel retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and set in contemporary Pakistan
Saadia Faruqi is a Pakistani American author, essayist and interfaith activist. “Brick Walls: Tales of Hope & Courage from Pakistan” is her debut adult fiction book, and her children’s early reader series “Yasmin” is published by Capstone. She trains various audiences including faith groups and law enforcement on topics pertaining to Islam, and has been featured in Oprah Magazine in 2017 as a woman making a difference in her community. She is editor-in-chief of Blue Minaret, a magazine for Muslim art, poetry and prose. She resides in Houston, TX with her husband and children.
About Meet Yasmin.
Yasmin Ahmad is a spirited second-grader who’s always on the lookout for those “aha” moments to help her solve life’s little problems. Taking inspiration from her surroundings and her big imagination, she boldly faces any situation?assuming her imagination doesn’t get too big, of course! A creative thinker and curious explorer, Yasmin and her multi-generational Pakistani American family will delight and inspire readers. [easy reader, for ages 5 and up].
SONIAH KAMAL: First author/book you read/fell in love with?
SAADIA FARUQI: I always loved reading Shakespeare in high school, ranging from Romeo and Juliet to satisfy my romanticism, to Juliet Caesar and Merchant of Venice to feed my political and cultural curiosity. From American authors, I completely fell in love with Gone with the Wind in my teens, and must have read it several times. Of course as a Pakistani I had virtually no knowledge about the civil war and race relations, so it was just a good story to me.
Who is the illustrator for Meet Yasmin?
To unwind: chai, coffee, water, wine?
I’m ashamed to say I’m not a tea drinker despite spending half my life in Pakistan! My go-to poison is Diet Coke, which I consider the panacea of all ills, including healing migraines.
A novel, short story, poem, essay, anything you believe should be mandatory reading?
There are so many books which one should read, it’s a never ending list for me. For essays and opinion pieces, or for book recommendations, I always send people right to the Electric Literature website. I’ve found such gems over there, electric words that speak to the heart and the mind.
Any classic you wished you’d pushed through in your teens?
I was a good girl! I read all the classics. Possibly Dr. Zhivago is the one I couldn’t finish, and also anything by Hemmingway put me to sleep. So maybe those are ones I’d read again now. But on the other hand, now I’d much rather be reading newer books by women of color, immigrant stories and the like, rather than what is termed as classic.
A favorite quote from Meet Yasmin.
Meet Yasmin is an early reader for children, so there aren’t any deep, philosophical sentences I could quote.
Your favorite book to film?
The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis. It’s the story of an Afghani girl who dresses up like a boy to earn for her family during the Taliban rule in Afghanistan. The book was a bestseller but the animated film, produced by Angelina Jolie, was equally fantastic.
Favorite Indie Book Store/s?
Blue Willow Books in Houston. They have the best events, especially for children’s authors, and they are really a part of their community.
The one think you wish you’d known about the writing life?
How much self-doubt I would have, and how seldom true inspiration would strike.
Does writing/publishing/marketing get any easier with each story/novel published?
Yes it does. You learn by making mistakes and improve yourself in every aspect of the craft. A writers’ first book is not as good as the second one, and so on. You also learn about marketing and publicity, and things that worried you on book 1 don’t even make an impact on your mind on book 2 or 3. It’s definitely something that gets better as time goes on.
Dog, Cat, Or?
Love cats, but refuse to actually keep one as a pet. I don’t want to add to the number of living things that depend on me!
Favorite book cover?
The Meet Yasmin! Cover is simply adorable. Once the book is published I may lose some of my wonder and begin to admire other books too.
Favorite song?
Anything by Asha Boshle or Kuman Sanu. And Junoon. I’m old school like that.
Ideal Vacation?
Road tripping in the Norwegian mountains. We did this last summer and the scenes were just breathtaking! The sun doesn’t fully set in those parts in the summer months, so we literally would drive until midnight and not realize what time it was. I recommend it to everyone.
Favorite work of art?
Van Gogh’s Starry Night. I realize it’s extremely popular, but I like it because of sentimental value. When my husband and I first got married, it was the first print we ever bought to hang in out tiny apartment. We’ve moved four states over the last twenty years but that painting still hangs in every bedroom we’ve ever slept in. It keeps me grounded in reality, and gives me a boost of confidence like nothing else.
Favorite Jane Austen novel and film adaptation?
I am not a huge fan of Jane Austen, but my favorite novel of hers is probably Emma. I just love the headstrong and misguided main character so much! In terms of adaptations, I’ll have to go with Bride and Prejudice, a Bollywood retelling with Aishwarya Rai as the heroine. If one is watching Austen, one might as well make it lively and colorful, with all the music and comedic drama of a Bollywood film.
Favorite Small Press and Literary Journal?
I have to plug my own literary journal Blue Minaret, which publishes poetry, art and fiction by Muslim creatives. Other than my own I love Catapult not just for its literary offerings like essays but also the books it publishes.
Last impulse book buy and why?
Too many to count. Serpent’s Secret by Sayantani Dasgupta was the very latest one because Bengali mythical creatures and princesses.
More Drunk on Ink Interviews:
Mike Chen: Here and Now and Then, a novel
Ruth Franklin: Shirley Jackson A Rather Haunted Life, biography
Colleen Oakley: Before I Go, a novel
Emily Midorikawa: A Secret Sisterhood: The literary friendships of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, George Eliot, and Virginia Woolf, biography
Shabnam Samuel: A Fractured Life, memoir
Elise Hooper: The Other Alcott, a novel
Anne Boyd Rioux: Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters, non fiction
Devoney Looser: The Making of Jane Austen, non fiction
Kristen Miller Zohn: The Currency of Taste- Gibbons Georgian Silver, coffee table book
Vanessa Hua, A River of Stars, novel
Chaitli Sen, The Pathless Sky, novel
Sonya Huber, Pain Woman Take Your Keys, memoir
Kathy Wilson Florence, Three of Cups, a novel
Sara Luce Look, Charis Books and More, independent book store
S J Sindu, Marriage of a Thousand Lies, a novel
Rosalie Morales Kearns, Kingdom of Men, a novel
Saadia Faruqi, Meet Yasmin, children’s literature
Rene Denfeld: The Child Finder, a novel
Jamie Brenner, The Husband Hour, a novel
Sara Marchant, The Driveway has Two Sides, memoir
Kirsten Imani Kasai, The House of Erzulie, a novel
Thrity Umrigar, The Secrets Between Us, novel
John Kessel, Pride and Prometheus, novel
Lisa Romeo, Starting with Goodbye: A Daughter’s Memoir of Love After Loss
Rachel May, An American Quilt: Unfolding a Story of Family and Slavery
Rebecca Entel, Fingerprints of Previous Owners, novel
Jamie Sumner, Unbound: Finding from Unrealistic Expectations of Motherhood
Falguni Kothari, My Last Love Story, novel
Tanaz Bathena, A Girl Like That, YA novel
