Pakistan has produced several world-class writers and despite the disruption caused by the global pandemic, Pakistani writers have been active and have produced some exceptional literary works. Here are five books by Pakistani writers that you should read in 2022:
1. Eye on the Prize
As the countdown begins to the sports extravaganza that will change their children’s lives, Shezray, Minahil and Hina have their own ways of coping with the pressure.
In a world where you can’t have it all, these women are prepared to do anything to ensure that they can. But behind closed doors, there’s more to them than what meets the eye. Secrets, insecurities and betrayal threaten to wreak havoc on their lives. Faced with these challenges, Shezray, Minahil and Hina must maintain a calm exterior and keep their Eye on the Prize.
2. Betrayal
A captured spy. A woman looking for redemption. A National Security Advisor trying to hold his country together.
When a captured spy reveals the presence of a mole within the intelligence establishment, it is left to Constantine D'Souza, an ex-police officer and a man forgotten by time, to lead the hunt. In a world of shadows, where lying is an art and betrayal is currency, will D'Souza be able to unearth the mole in time? Discover fiction books by Pakistani writers and authors at Chapters.
3. The Verdict
Haunted by a tragic past, a lawyer, Sikander Ghaznavi, returns to Pakistan and takes on the defence of a Christian boy accused of defiling a mosque. Out of his depth, Sikander reaches out to the sharpest human rights lawyer he knows - the woman he has loved for years, but now another man's wife. As they deal with their unresolved feelings, the lawyers confront a corrupt system, a town turned against them, and a prophecy that predicts their deaths.
Will they save the boy? Or will the city of Quetta, its prejudice inflamed by extremists, consume them and deliver them to a deadly fate?
4. House Number 12 Block Number 3
Karachi, Pakistan (20th century) – Nadia has changed. She has been waking up in the middle of the night in fits of anxiety, avoiding her friends and family, and skipping her university classes. With the recent death of her father, Haji Rahmat, Nadia’s condition has further spiraled. There is no acceptable diagnosis for her behavior, and speculations abound: she may have a rare disease, she may be possessed by a jinn, or perhaps she is inclined to madness. Whatever the cause of this mysterious affliction, Zainab, Nadia’s mother, is at pains to keep it hidden from the community at large; she is worried Nadia will be labeled as mad, and she knows all too well the taboos that mental illness brings with it.
While the country tethers on political unrest, and Nadia seems to get worse by the day, the family searches desperately for the cause of, and the cure for their daughter’s mysterious malady.
House Number 12 Block Number 3, the home that has sheltered the Rahmat family for decades, narrates and recollects past events, trying to absolve itself of the burden it feels of being privy to the real reason for Nadia’s turmoil, but not being able to do anything about it.
House Number 12 Block Number 3 is Sana Balagamwala's debut novel set in 20th century Karachi. Available exclusively at www.chapters.pk in Pakistan.
5. Beyond The Fields
Born to a poor, landless farmer in the month of the monsoon rains, twins Zara and Tara grow up amongst the fields of wheat and cotton in a remote village in Pakistan. During an afternoon spree of games, Tara is kidnapped from the fields and raped. All seems to be resolved after her parents accept an unexpected marriage proposal for their "dishonoured" daughter. But the nightmare resurfaces when a newspaper clipping emerges calling the union into question.
Determined to rescue her twin Zara embarks on a harrowing quest for justice, battling keepers of culture that uphold propriety above all else and braving the unknown dangers of an urban centre.
Set in the early 1980s against the backdrop of martial law and social turmoil, Beyond the Fields is a riveting, timely look at the profound inequality and traditions that disempower women in our world and survival as a dance to the beat of a different future.
Which books by Pakistani writers are you looking forward to reading in 2022? Let us know in the comments section. We look forward to hearing from you
2 comments
Beyond the fields is one of my favourite books by a Pakistani writer as it narrates the challenges women face in rural Pakistan.
Books By Pakistani Writers are always my favourite because they cover subjects that are of interest to me. Chapters online bookstore in Pakistan has good collection of Pakistani writers.