In Conversation With Ayisha Malik

Overview

We are delighted to welcome author Ayisha Malik to City, University of London. Ayisha will read from and discuss her debut novel, Sofia Khan is Not Obliged (Zaffre, 2015) and give us a sneak peak of her new novel, The Movement (Headline, 2022). She will be in conversation with Dr Hetta Howes and will take questions from the audience.

18:00 – 18:30: arrival, registration and reception
18:30 – 19:30: talk/Q&A
19:30 – 20:00: concluding reception

N.B. Registration is required in advance to attend this event. All timings mentioned refer to UK time and the event is scheduled to take place in person. Please familiarise yourself with the current guidance for visitors attending in person events at City and the terms and conditions for attending public events at City.

Ayisha Malik

Born and raised in South London, Ayisha Malik is a former publicist at Penguin Random House and is now a full-time writer. She has authored four novels and contributed to two collections, A Change is Gonna Come (Stripes Publishing) and A Match Made in Heaven: British Muslim Women Write About Love and Desire. Her debut novel, Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, has been described as “The Muslim Bridget Jones” and her 2019 novel This Green and Pleasant Land was the winner of The Diverse Book Awards in 2020.

Her upcoming fiction novel, The Movement, follows protagonist Sara Javed. Sara, tired of everyone shouting about something, becomes the accidental figurehead of a new global movement when she decides to take her own advice and shut up. The Silent Movement splits society in two, sparking outrage in its opposers as global structures start to shift and the lives of those closest to Sara begin to unravel.

Praise for The Movement:

"Funny, exhilarating, wickedly smart. Clever, truly addictive storytelling - I want to push it into everyone’s hands immediately" (Daisy Buchanan, author of The Sisterhood)

"A huge and exciting book with a breathtakingly original premise" (Imran Mahmood, author of You Don’t Know Me)

"A book for, and of, the now" (Vaseem Khan, author of The Dying Day)

"A compelling, dark, must-read page turner - Malik makes us care with wry humour and bite" (Helen Lederer, comedian)

Dr Hetta Howes

This event is hosted by Dr Hetta Howes. Hetta is a Senior Lecturer in English Literature at City, University of London and a BBC/AHRC New Generation Thinker. She is a regular broadcaster for BBC Radio 3 and 4 and writes for The Times Literary Supplement and BBC History Extra.