Nolan wonders if it’s “inherently less cool” to be a male novelist these days and thinks men are missing a “cool, sexy, gunslinger” movement in fiction that rivals the scene in the 80s and 90s. “It’s unlikely now that you would have a male novelist on the cover of a non-literary magazine – as in a cultural figure who’s aspirational,” she says. Nur wants to be the good son his parents ask him to be, and the good boyfriend Yasmina needs him to be. But as everything he holds dear is challenged, he is forced to ask, is love really a choice for a second-generation immigrant son like him?

When Riz Ahmed gave a speech in Parliament in 2017 about Muslim representation on screen, I had hoped it might be the turning point. No taboo is off-limits in Kasim Ali's bold and thought-provoking debut. Good Intentions is a necessary addition to literature." Not because it’s a bad book — on the contrary, it’s an excellent one, earnestly depicting the nuances of South Asian culture and the prejudices and customs deeply engrained in it, even in the UK. But what Ali frustratingly uncovers in his story is the fact that these prejudices continue to impact young South Asians, and can threaten to drive a thriving relationship to its tragic breaking point. I read The Santanic Verses despite my mum’s anger (because the book is against Islam) and I was angry he did that because, along with the obvious, he’s a very good writer. So yeah, I guess it comes from being frustrated that I can only think of those two. Karolina Sutton, an agent at Curtis Brown, is surprised that men are feeling excluded from fiction. She stresses that it has taken women centuries to find their voice and be confident within publishing: “Why wasn’t there uproar in the media when women were excluded?” she asks. “It’s happened for the first time ever and we know very little about what this means in the long term.”Not all young male authors recognise this as a grim time for men writing fiction. Sam Byers, who published his third novel, Come Join Our Disease, in March, is a 42-year-old man who is thriving in the modern publishing world. He believes we’re living through a particularly fertile time for literature that’s largely thanks to women breaking down traditional forms. He praises Rachel Cusk’s experiments in autofiction, Eimear McBride’s new approach to modernism, and Elena Ferrante’s “big, history-spanning state-of-the-nation novel”, which people used to only associate with the big male beasts of fiction. Kasim Ali: I grew up in an environment where I wasn’t able to express emotion otherwise I’d get taken the piss out of, right? Called ‘gay’ or ‘a girl’ or whatever. And then I’d internalise those things as insults, and stop doing the things I wanted to that led to people calling me those insults.

Rep: British Pakistani Muslim mc with depression and anxiety, British Sudanese Muslim li, British Sudanese Muslim side character with depression, British Pakistani Muslim gay side character, British Palestinian gay side character, British Pakistani Muslim side characters In her thought-provoking and topical book, ecologist Rebecca Nesbit investigates the current state of conservation in the natural world, asking a series of pertinent and timely questions: “Are the species we love the best ones to protect? Do all extinctions matter? What sacrifices should we make in the name of conservation?” Looking at issues such as culling, hunting, rewilding and the complexities of invasive species, she provides an illuminating analysis of where human efforts may best be directed. Crying in H Mart: A Memoir Yet, we also tend to underestimate our parents — a theme Ali highlights in his book. “Sometimes we talk about our parents as being a product of their time and their environment — we think that we have all these ‘progressive’ and ‘liberal’ ideas of the world and that our parents are not going to be accepting of those opinions,” explains Ali. “I really wanted to talk about the difference in politics between our parents and us and the gap between those dimensions, but I also really wanted to talk about giving our parents a chance to change with us.” Representing modern and multidimensional Muslims Compelling, emotionally honest, and unafraid of the gray areas of race, faith, sexuality, and love. Kasim Ali's debut Good Intentions shows how complicated relationships can be, even with the best of intentions." I really enjoyed the writing (the banter between the main leads, the descriptions of the food omg) such that I ended up tabbing way more than expected!! 😀 tbh this was going so well and I fully expected to give this 3.75-4 stars but the way the ending was executed and after sitting down and thinking through my feelings for the book again, I decided on 3.5 stars.Moving, modern and utterly engaging. What a talent’ Rhik Samadder, author of I Never Said I Love You Compelling. In the tradition of Spike Lee's film School Daze, Ali's novel explores the ways that racism may do its insidious damaged even among those who are traditionally not its targets and victims."

A frank, moving and truly compelling tale of the complexities of modern romance, and how family, friendships, society, and our own internalised prejudices can impact upon it. Good Intentions is a beautiful and honest story that I'd defy anyone not to be pulled in by, from a fantastic new talent in contemporary fiction' Sareeta Domingo, author of If I Don't Have You Good Intentions is a heart-breaking story of a young man caught between worlds-between youth and adulthood, between family and passion, between ambition and survival. Kasim Ali manages to build a quiet yet unbearable tension while taking us through a nuanced examination of the complexities of racial prejudice, especially within and across minority groups. A gorgeous, unbelievable debut' Angie Kim, author of Miracle Creek One of the most eagerly awaited debuts of 2022 . . . Exploring race, romance, and mental health problems with disarming candor . . . [ Good Intentions] is a rather clever novel about vulnerability and victimhood that subtly subverts the reader's expectations.”

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Nur is nonetheless a sympathetic protagonist and Ali sensitively explores racial tension and filial guilt.' The Guardian Take a Look at Our Summary of November Highlights, Whether You're Looking for the Latest Releases or Gift Inspiration This is a complex, tender and bittersweet love story that interrogates familial obligation, religion, race, what it means to be “good”– and specifically, what it means to be “good” to each other.' The Skinny Good Intentions is a magnificent and messy love story that broke my heart. Bittersweet and tender, Ali writes about modern day relationships with such compassion. This is a novel for anyone who has ever known what it is to be conflicted in falling in love, feeling the expectations of our families but also ourselves; it is for anyone who has ever felt their heart breaking under the weight of it all' Huma Qureshi, author of How We Met Good Intentions is so absorbing, compelling, and beautifully written. Its ending brought me close to tears—what an incredibly assured debut. I can't wait to see what Kasim Ali writes next."