That's what religion teaches: that life is a temporary thing which is going to dissolve one day. Leila Aboulela daydissolvelife Change image and share on social
My mum and dad were speaking all the time about, 'In Sudan we do this,' and 'In Egypt we do that,' so I was very aware of cultural differences. I was confused growing up; it gave me a feeling of being an outsider watching others. But I think this is good for a writer. Leila Aboulela awareconfusecultural share on social
Sudan is not Arab enough for Arabs and not African enough for Africans. Leila Aboulela africanarabsudan Change image and share on social
My faith was started off by my grandmother and mother, and so I always saw it as a very private, personal thing. Leila Aboulela faithgrandmothermother Change image and share on social
My characters are not role-model Muslims, but they struggle to make choices using Muslim logic. Leila Aboulela characterchoicelogic Change image and share on social
Many Arabic/Islamic words have now entered the English dictionary, such as haj, hijab, Eid, etc., and I no longer need to put them in italics or explain them. Leila Aboulela arabicdictionaryeid Change image and share on social
My father married out of the family. I also married outside the family. Leila Aboulela familyfathermarry Change image and share on social
I wasn't trained to write non-fiction. Leila Aboulela fictiontrainwrite Change image and share on social
The coverage of Islam in the media is becoming more sophisticated, and there is more access to knowledge. Leila Aboulela accesscoverageislam Change image and share on social
