"Feeling damned for the way you are born is hard enough. Having to protect those you love from the truth is harder still".
I was literally in tears when I finished ' A Dutiful Boy' by Mohsin Zaidi this afternoon. This beautifully written coming-of-age memoir was recently named by The Guardian as one of the best of 2020 and I completely agree.
In it, Mohsin shares his experiences growing up in a devout Shia Muslim family, as he navigates childhood in a failing East London school and later life at Oxford University as he worked to become a top criminal barrister. Underpinning all of this however, is his battle with his faith as he comes to terms with his sexuality, and the acceptance of it in himself and by his family.
This memoir really opened my eyes to struggles I now realise I knew little about. And this is one of the greatest things about diverse literature - the way in which it allows you to understand more about experiences that are so vastly different from your own.
As it came recommended by a friend, I had high expectations of this book, but it has massively exceeded them. It is raw, at times amusing, and at others utterly heart-breaking.
It would spoil your reading of it to say too much more, but I highly recommend.
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