Saffron Dreams
You don’t know you’re a misfit until you are marked as an outcast.
From the darkest hour of American history emerges a mesmerizing tale of tender love, a life interrupted, and faith recovered. Arissa Illahi, a Muslim artist and writer, discovers in asingle moment that no matter how carefully you map your life, it is life itself that chooses your destiny. After her husband’s death in the collapse of the World Trade Center, the discovery of hismanuscript marks Arissa’s reconnection to life. Her unborn son and the unfinished novel fuse in her mind into one life-defining project that becomes, at once, the struggle for her emotional survival and the redemption of her race. Saffron Dreams is a novel about our ever-evolving identities and the events and placesthat shape them. It reminds us that, in the midst of tragedy, our dreams can become a lasting legacy.
Saffron Dreams is Book #5 of the Reflections of America Series from Modern History Press.
Recipient of the Patras Bukhari Award for English Language, the Golden Quill Award, the Reader Views Award, the Written Art Award, and a grant from the Hobson Foundation. Named as one of the 50 Greatest Works of Immigration Literature by the Open Education Database.
Publisher
Modern History Press
Publication Date:
February 5, 2009
Language
English
Print Length:
232 pages
ISBN:
9781932690736
Book Trailer
Reviews
“In this insightful, intimate narrative, Pakistani-born Arissa Illahi moves to New York City to be with her husband, who had taken a job at the World Trade Center’s Windows on the World restaurant to allow time for completing his novel. He perishes when the towers collapse, and Arissa nearly crumples herself as she struggles with tremendous grief, a troublesome pregnancy, and the various trials she faces as a Muslim when others ignorantly associate her with the terrorists. Abdullah excels at examining the complexity of moving on after this historical event, especially from Arissa’s unique perspective as a writer and artist struggling to rear a child with special needs. Like Abdullah’s story collection, Beyond the Cayenne Wall, this work provides a remarkable, inevitably hopeful glimpse into the daily life of Muslim woman living in America. Highly recommended.” – Faye A. Chadwell, Library Journal
“Eloquently written, a must-read for anyone interested in exploring the lived experiences of Muslim women in the United States.”
– Dr. Ali Asani, Professor of the Practice of Indo-Muslim Languages and Cultures, Harvard University
“This is a quiet book about loss and grief, about hope and commitment, about cultural differences, and about our common humanity. It is, above all, a success story in the sense that living, in spite of all its difficulties, is a worthy challenge. The author manages to tell this tale with such a delicate touch, never falling into the maudlin and never giving Arissa the powers of a superhero. A beautifully written narrative that looks at the aftermath of September 11 with a slightly different perspective, the book unfolds and blossoms with an unexpected tenderness while never denying the myriad effects of tragedy.” – Jenclair, Book Blog: A Garden Carried in the Pocket
“What really struck me about Saffron Dreams is that the 9/11 attacks aren’t the only serious subject addressed in this small novel. Abdullah manages to talk about racism, fundamentalism, widowhood, culture clashes, and the challenges of raising a child with disabilities within its pages. Abdullah’s writing is crisp, sharp, and clear. She does not mince words; her writing is very precise, each word chosen carefully. In the end, the message I took away from the novel is that what we, as citizens of this earth, have in common is far greater than the differences that set us apart. We must look to our common humanity to bring us together. This is a message full of hope and love, much like Saffron Dreams itself. I thoroughly enjoyed Saffron Dreams and recommend it to anyone interested in multicultural fiction – it’s a great read, and you won’t be disappointed.” – Swapna Krishna, S. Krishna’s Books
“If ever there was a book more eloquently written than Saffron Dreams, I would like to see it. The words simply fly off the page and float into your consciousness; their power touches you in a way like no other book might ever touch you again. The struggles of being a 9/11 widow and a Muslim come together in a moving story that will find you filled with every emotion ever experienced by a human being. Abdullah’s masterful storytelling draws you in from the very first moment and does not release you until you’ve turned the very last page. Anyone who has ever loved and lost will be touched by this heartrending yet triumphant story of one woman’s difficult journey to pick up the pieces of her shattered life in a country that suddenly put her and an entire race under a microscope to make sense of a monumental tragedy. The descriptions and details put you right alongside Arissa so that you are totally captivated by her world, her dreams, her struggles, and her triumphs.” – Cheryl C. Malandrinos, Book Blog: The Book Connection
“Saffron Dreams is an unflinching look at the societal pressures of widowhood, the role that art can play in the healing process, and the impact of media bias and stereotyping on the Muslim American community in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks.” – Sandhya Nankani, Literary Safari
“Following Arissa’s story makes the reader realize how little most ofus know and understand the world of Muslims, and how incrediblywrong so many of our perceptions are.” -Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson, Reader Views
“Shaila Abdullah’s Saffron Dreams is a fascinating look at how events can quickly change a life forever. The thread of Muslim beliefs in a modern world, and especially how women balance ancient and modern traditions, is a fresh and different viewpoint.” – Sandie Kirkland, Rebecca’s Reads
“Saffron Dreams by Shaila Abdullah is a novel that reads as if it is a genuine autobiography. You cannot help but feel that this is the story of someone genuinely caught up in 9/11, an innocent and haphazard victim. I enjoyed the way this story weaves back and forth, filling bits of the canvas until at the very end of the book you have worked through it all with Arissa, have come to terms. It also reminds us that whether Moslem, Christian, non-believers or whatever, all were caught up in this and there was no pity for any of the victims, whatever their religion or background story.” — 51 stories
“I loved that this examined both the difficulties of being Muslim in post-9/11 America as well as the pain of losing a loved one on 9/11, and all in the guise of one character. Recommended.” — Devourer of Books
“Saffron Dreams is such a moving book. In its page,s I found a character to care about, a story to enjoy, and issues to think about. Highly recommended.” — Medieval Bookworm
“Saffron Dreams is more than just an emotional journey of perseverance amid the most trying circumstances and tragic events, it is an evolution of one Muslim woman into a whole self, strong enough to stand alone and blossom.” —Savvy Verse and Wit
Quotes
“He immersed himself in the light one instant and tore away from it the next—the dance that life played with him on a daily basis that he had by now orchestrated to perfection. The light was his to tango, not his to hold; illumination, he had learned, wasn’t the victory.”
“The air outside was thick, buttressed by my decision, sparse in joy but swollen with complexities. It comforted me… I delighted in how clean my insides felt, like they had just been laundered and wrung dry, soapy smell suspended in the air.”
“I did not feel a sense of betrayal as I walked away… The sun had just started to peek at the horizon… To an onlooker I had removed my veil, but from where I stood, I had merely shifted it from my head to my heart.”
“For the longest time, I thought my life was like the canvas of a barmy artist who knew when to begin a project but not when to stop.”
“I don’t think we are born with malice… We grow up to resist it, our conscience our rescuer.”
“There’s no real sense in stepping out of the cave of your past if you get trapped in yet again by your existing baggage.”
“In the society we lived in, knowledge came from unspoken sources: whispered conversations, half-read articles, books no one expected us to discover. Answers arrived without being asked for, and questions were learned by observing what could not be spoken aloud.”
“I walked through crowded places guarded and alert, convinced danger could arrive at any moment. My body learned caution long before I understood what it was meant to protect me from.”
“You perfect the art of deciphering silence when you grow up surrounded by it. A glance, a pause, a breath held too long begin to speak more clearly than words.”
“Sleepless nights demanded solutions. Relief mattered more than long-term consequences. It was easier to survive the moment than to imagine recovery.”
“I needed to be alone with grief, to walk without destination, accompanied only by shadows and unanswered thoughts.”
“Loss brought freedoms I had never wanted. Independence arrived stripped of excitement, offering choices that held no appeal.”
“Breaking life into smaller, manageable pieces made it possible to continue. The whole was too heavy; the parts were survivable.”
“There is little use in stepping forward if the weight of what came before is never set down.”