Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

pick

Mohamed has definitely lead a rough, complicated life. He was taken from his birth mother by a philandering father and placed into the care of an abusive stepmother. He immigrated from Somalia to the UAE to the Netherlands to Canada. At each place he faced obstacles due to his color, immigration status, queerness, and religion. He has faced homelessness and addiction. His is a sad story, but I‘m glad he is alive and able to tell it.

Cinfhen

alisiakae This sounds really good. 4y

Cinfhen Agreed @4thhouseontheleft #stacked 4y

Cinfhen Great review, Meg 💗 4y

Megabooks @Cinfhen thanks 😘 4y

Megabooks @4thhouseontheleft @cinfhen it‘s a great memoir, and I‘ve read a lot of them! I was also happy to support a small press and him as an author. 4y

93 likes4 stack adds5 comments

Megabooks

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

New arrivals this week! #bookmail

Looking forward to bookspin tomorrow. Maybe one of these will count towards my new arrival. 🤔🤷🏻‍♀️

merelybookish Curious about Girlhood! 4y

Megabooks @merelybookish I‘m seriously considering starting it before bed! 4y

merelybookish @Megabooks Look forward to your thoughts! 🙂 4y

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BarbaraBB I am intrigued by these three! 4y

Megabooks @BarbaraBB 🤞🏻 I enjoy them! Buying is half the fun. 😂😂 4y

MrT Thank you the recommendation! Bought. 4y

89 likes1 stack add6 comments

Lindy

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

pick

It‘s amazing that this searing memoir even exists. Ali wrote it while he was homeless, typing his story into googledocs on computers at Toronto Public Library. As a child he was moved from Somalia to UAE to the Netherlands to Canada. He was beaten daily and felt no one cared about him. Alienated from Muslim faith, attracted to other boys but damaged by the trauma he had experienced, Ali spent years searching for his place in the world. #LGBTQ 🇨🇦

Lindy @Annl There‘s a warning at the start: “This book is about addiction and recovery from trauma. It contains graphic references to physical and sexual abuse that may be disturbing to some readers.” 5y

Annl Thanks for tagging me. I am always interested in books from the homeland. 5y

54 likes5 stack adds2 comments

Lindy

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

Stories are one of the few Somali art forms that have survived into the present day. When a home was packed up & loaded onto a camel, there was no need for wall decorations. Anything lacking a purpose was neglected. Our creativity, as a people, rested entirely on our tongues. Instead of family portraits or calligraphic tiles, we had the lore of ancestors, heroic tales & the travails of roaming holy men. Poetry sneaked into every aspect of life.

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Lindy

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

I was shown around the building by the principal.
“You speak English so well!”
Her smile was unsettling. Its permanence bordered on the plastic. I didn‘t realize it then, but smiling was something of a pastime in this country. Smiling in the Netherlands was akin to a crime.

Annl Is this a good read? 5y

Lindy @Annl Yes, for readers interested who are willing/able to read about trauma and abuse. I will tag you in my review later today. 5y

38 likes2 comments

Lindy

Angry Queer Somali Boy: A Complicated Memoir | Mohamed Abdulkarim Ali

“We left the camp in 1993 for a village named Schipluiden. It was within walking distance of Delft, the town renowned the world over for producing counterfeit china.”
[Why have I never previously thought of Delftware that way? Photo from internet.]

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