Kamila Shamsie

In a prison cell in the US, a man stands trembling, naked, fearfully waiting to be shipped to Guantanamo Bay. How did it come to this? he wonders August 9th, 1945, Nagasaki. Hiroko Tanaka steps out onto her veranda, taking in the view of the terraced slopes leading up to the sky. Wrapped in a kimono with three black cranes swooping across the back, she is twenty-one, in love with the man she is to marry, Konrad Weiss. In a split second, the world turns white. In the next, it explodes with the sound of fire and the horror of realisation. In the numbing aftermath of a bomb that obliterates everything she has known, all that remains are the bird-shaped burns on her back, an indelible reminder of the world she has lost. In search of new beginnings, she travels to Delhi two years later. There she walks into the lives of Konrad''s half-sister, Elizabeth, her husband James Burton, and their employee Sajjad Ashraf, from whom she starts to learn Urdu. As the years unravel, new homes replace those left behind and old wars are seamlessly usurped by new conflicts.But the shadows of history - personal, political - are cast over the entwined worlds of the Burtons, Ashrafs and the Tanakas as they are transported from Pakistan to New York, and in the novel''s astonishing climax, to Afghanistan in the immediate wake of 9/11. The ties that have bound them together over decades and generations are tested to the extreme, with unforeseeable consequences. Sweeping in its scope and mesmerising in its evocation of time and place, Burnt Shadows is an epic narrative of disasters evaded and confronted, loyalties offered and repaid, and loves rewarded and betrayed.

In 1986, Pakistan''s greatest poet was found brutally murdered - beaten to death by government thugs.Two years later, his lover, fearless activist Samina Akram, disappears. Her daughter, Aasmani, has always assumed her mother simply abandoned her - since she had left so many times before to follow the Poet into exile.But now, working at Pakistan''s first independent TV station, Aasmani runs into an old friend of her mother''s who hands her a letter written recently, in the Poet and Samina''s secret code. As more letters arrive, Aasmani becomes certain that they will lead her to Samina.Despite menacing signs, disbelief from her family and worries of her new lover, Aasmani decodes the letters and searches for their source.But if she manages to locate it, will she find what she''s looking for?Merging the personal with the political, Broken Verses is at once a thrilling journey through modern-day Pakistan and an intimate mother-daughter story that asks how to forgive a mother who leaves.

What is the moment, that exact moment when everything changes and the friends you have been, become the lovers you might be?Soul mates from birth Karim and Raheen finish one another''s sentences, speak in anagrams and lie spine to spine as children. They are irrevocably bound to one another and to Karachi, Pakistan. It beats in their hearts - violent, polluted, corrupt, vibrant, brave and ultimately, home. However, Raheen is fiercely loyal and naively blinkered and she resents Karim''s need to map their city, his need to name its streets and to expand the privileged world they know. When Karim is forced to leave for London their differences of opinion become a painful quarrel. As the years go by they let a barrier of silence build between them until, finally, they are brought together during a dry summer of strikes and ethnic violence and their relationship is poised between strained friendship and fated love. Impassioned and touching, KARTOGRAPHY is a love song to Karachi. In her extraordinary new novel, Kamila Shamsie shows us that whatever happens in the world, we must never forget the complicated war in our own hearts.

Raheen and her best friend, Karim, share an idyllic childhood in upper-class Karachi.Their parents were even once engaged to each others'' partners until they rematched in what they call "the fiance swap." But as adolescence distances the friends, Karim takes refuge in maps while Raheen searches for the secret behind her parents'' exchange.What she uncovers reveals not just a family''s but a country''s turbulent history-and a grown-up Raheen and Karim are caught between strained friendship and fated love.A love story with a family mystery at its heart, Kartography is a dazzling novel by a young writer of astonishing maturity and exhilarating style. Shamsie transports us to a world we have not often seen in fiction-vibrant, dangerous, sensuous Pakistan.But even as she takes us far from the familiar, her story of passion and family secrets rings universally true.

Hiroko Tanaka steps out onto her veranda, taking in the view of the terraced slopes leading up to the sky. Wrapped in a kimono with three black cranes swooping across the back, she is twenty-one, in love with the man she is to marry, Konrad Weiss. In a split second, the world turns white. In the next, it explodes with the sound of fire.

Kamila Shamsie és una escriptora d'una ambició i una força immenses. Ombres cremades és una novel·la absorbent que provoca una poderosa resposta emocional i intel·lectual del lector. Salman RushdieNagasaki, 9 d'agost del 1945: La Hiroko surt al balco, des d'on veu les terrasses que s'eleven al cel. La jove te 21 anys i esta enamorada de l'home alemany amb qui es casara. En una fraccio de segon, pero, el mon es torna blanc i esclata amb el so del foc i l'horror. En un instant la bomba atomica ha esborrat tot el que ella ha conegut i estimat. L'unic que en queda son les ombres de tres grues, gravades amb foc a la seva esquena: una petja indeleble del mon que ha perdut.Al llarg dels anys seguents, la Hiroko viatja pel mon, viu en noves llars i coneix mes guerres. Les ombres de la historia assetgen les families amb qui conviu. I en el seu trajecte des de l'India, al Pakistan o Nova York arriba fins a l'Afganistan, just despres dels atemptats de l'11 de setembre del 2001. Aleshores, els lligams que han unit aquestes families durant generacions es tensen fins a l'extrem amb consequencies imprevisibles.

Quinta novela de la escritora pakistaní Kamila Shamsie, Sombras quemadas ha marcado un punto de inflexión en el conjunto de su obra. Tanto críticos como escritores han elogiado su prosa viva y su formidable vision de los acontecimientos historicos. A lo largo de seis decadas desde Japon en los ultimos dias de la Segunda Guerra Mundial y la India al borde de la particion, hasta Pakistan en la decada de los ochenta, Nueva York tras el 11-S y Afganistan durante los bombardeos subsiguientes al atentado, las historias comunes a dos familias convergen hacia un destino comun.Y en el centro del relato, un personaje exquisitamente delineado: Hiroko Tanaka, una joven maestra empleada en una fabrica de municion en Nagasaki que aguarda con impaciencia el final de la contienda para casarse con el joven aleman Konrad Weiss. Una mañana de agosto de 1945, en apenas unos segundos, una cegadora explosion de luz y fuego destruye todo lo que ha conocido y amado. Como unico recuerdo de su pasado, conservara el contorno de los pajaros de su kimono de seda que la radiacion ha marcado en su espalda para siempre. Hiroko huira muy lejos, y cuando el amor vuelva a surgir en su vida, debera hacer frente a multiples y dolorosos desafios.El hilo del relato, tensado por el suspense, no solo guia al lector a traves de un esclarecedor recorrido por el siglo que acaba de terminar, sino que proporciona claves sobre el actual: sobre su lado oscuro, sin duda, pero tambien sobre los caminos que conducen a un espacio de esperanza.

July 1914. Young Englishwoman Vivian Rose Spencer is running up a mountainside in an ancient land, surrounded by figs and cypresses. Soon she will discover the Temple of Zeus, the call of adventure, and the ecstasy of love. Thousands of miles away a twenty-year old Pathan, Qayyum Gul, is learning about brotherhood and loyalty in the British Indian army.July, 1915. Qayyum Gul is returning home after losing an eye at Ypres, his allegiances in tatters. Viv is following the mysterious trail of her beloved. They meet on a train to Peshawar, unaware that a connection is about to be forged between their lives one that will reveal itself fifteen years later, on the Street of Storytellers, when a brutal fight for freedom, an ancient artefact and a mysterious green-eyed woman will bring them together again.A powerful story of friendship, injustice, love and betrayal, A God in Every Stone carries you across the globe, into the heart of empires fallen and conquered, reminding us that we all have our place in the chaos of history and that so much of what is lost will not be forgotten.

Summer, 1914. Young Englishwoman Vivian Rose Spencer is in an ancient land, about to discover the Temple of Zeus, the call of adventure, and love. Thousands of miles away a twenty-year-old Pathan, Qayyum Gul, is learning about brotherhood and loyalty in the British Indian army. Summer, 1915. Viv has been separated from the man she loves; Qayyum has lost an eye at Ypres. They meet on a train to Peshawar, unaware that a connection is about to be forged between their lives - one that will reveal itself fifteen years later when anti-colonial resistance, an ancient artefact and a mysterious woman will bring them together again.

LA NOVELA GANADORA DEL WOMENS PRIZE 2018.¿Hasta donde llegarías para salvar a quien más quieres? La historia de una familia atrapada en el conflicto entre Occidente y el Estado Islámico.Isma, una joven musulmana britanica, ha conseguido independizarse de su familia y piensa ir a Estados Unidos para completar sus estudios. Pero este simple hecho posee una significacion muy especial si consideramos que su padre fue acusado de terrorismo y murio camino de Guantanamo; que su hermano ha decidido unirse al Estado Islamico; que su hermana es una joven muy problematica incapaz de hacer frente a la vida Ese pasado estallara en mil pedazos cuando Isma conozca a Eamonn y las diferencias que parecian superadas vuelvan a irrumpir en la vida de todos."Un relato conmovedor."The Guardian"Un buen novelista desdibuja la linea imaginaria entre nosotros y ellos; Kamila Shamsie pertenece al pequeño grupo de autores que hace olvidar esa linea. Los desterrados es una novela importante,oportuna y necesaria."Rabih Alameddine"Los desterrados me dejo asombrado, estremecido, lleno de admiracion por su coraje y ambicion. Lectura recomendada para los primeros ministros y presidentes de todo el mundo."Peter Carey

Maryam e Zahra cresceram em Karachi, cidade mais populosa e rica do Paquisto. Tem jeitos de ser e de pensar o mundo muito diferentes entre si, o que no impede que sejam a melhor amiga uma da outra desde crianças, uma amizade umbilical que as acompanhara vida afora e que e parte essencial das pessoas que se tornam. Maryam e de familia de empresarios e foi escolhida pelo avo para substitui-lo no comando da empresa, quando for adulta. Zahra, otima aluna, sonha em ir para a Inglaterra para cursar a universidade.Em 1988, o partido de Benazir Bhutto vence as eleiçes e ela vem a ser a primeira chefe de governo mulher de um Estado muçulmano; o momento e de abertura politica e esperança, depois de uma ditadura. As amigas, ento com 14 anos, vivenciam uma experiencia traumatica que muda as historias de suas vidas.Em 2019, ambas so mulheres bem sucedidas morando em Londres. Maryam e uma estrela no mundo dos investimentos em empresas startups de tecnologia. Zahra, depois de uma carreira de sucesso como advogada, e a voz do Centro de Liberdades Civis (CLC), uma importante organizaço no governamental que defende os direitos dos refugiados. A poderosa narraço de Kamila Shamsie consegue uma sintonia entre os dramas pessoais e o ambiente politico-social de uma epoca: o Paquisto do final dos anos 1980, a Londres contemporanea toda vigiada por cameras de reconhecimento facial e as voltas com refugiados do mundo todo.Quando figuras do passado reaparecem inesperadamente, as duas amigas tem de encarar o antagonismo entre suas vises de mundo, antes deixado nas sombras da luminosa amizade que as unia. O no dito. O no entendido. As entrelinhas. O curso de duas vidas que foram modificadas, o curso de duas vidas que se modificaro.

En 1986, Raheen y su mejor amigo Karim tienen trece años y viven en Karachi, al sur de Pakistán. Unidos desde la cuna, ambos se entienden casi sin hablar y cada uno sueña los sueños del otro. Comparten una infancia idilica en la alta sociedad de Karachi con sus respectivos padres, que tambien son intimos amigos. Los dos matrimonios estuvieron comprometidos a la pareja contraria antes de producirse lo que llaman, entre risas y bromas, un trueque de parejas. Pero ahora, esa estrecha relacion se va a romper, cuando la familia de Karim decide dejar Karachi, que se ha convertido en el escenario de violentos enfrentamientos interetnicos, para trasladarse a Londres. La noche de su partida, Raheen se da cuenta de que mis lagrimas eran las suyas, y las suyas eran las mias.Mientras el tiempo y la distancia, en plena adolescencia, les separa, Karim y Raheen intentan comprender, cada uno a su manera, su propio pasado. Karim lo hara a traves de la cartografia, que para el se ha convertido en un obsesion, buscando en los mapas una manera de enfrentarse al desorden cotidiano. Raheen, por su parte, que ha intentado mantenerse alejada del secreto que se esconde detras del intercambio de parejas llevado a cabo por sus padres, decide enfrentarse a la verdad, y vuelve dos decadas atras para enfrentarse a una turbulenta historia, no solo familiar, sino de todo un pais. Segun pasan los años, un muro de silencio se levanta entre los dos amigos, hasta que se reencuentran en Karachi, la ciudad de su infancia, en el transcurso de un calido verano, sacudido por las huelgas y la violencia etnica, durante el cual su relacion queda suspendida en un punto intermedio entre la amistad tensa y el amor predestinado.

Isma é a irmã mais velha. Aos 19 anos, com a morte da mãe, passou a olhar pelos irmãos menores, os gêmeos Aneeka e Parvaiz, muito ligados entre si. Ingleses muçulmanos de ascendência paquistanesa, el

A richly woven novel The voice that guides us around this world darts with wit and lightness in a way that is unique and often lovely Rana Dasgupta Guardian The plot gallops along ensuring a gripping read thought provoking Independent A highly accomplished novel A multi layered but shrewdly simple tale New Statesman Books of the Year BY THE ACCLAIMED WINNER OF THE WOMEN S PRIZE FOR FICTION When I can bear no more of separation when I have learnt all that absence can teach me of desire the walls will shimmer and I will step out of the mirage into your arms Fourteen years after the disappearance of her fearless beautiful mother Samina Aasmaani clings onto the dream of her return refusing to believe she is dead Now grown up and living in the bustling chaos and rich culture of modern day Karachi she receives longed for proof that her mother is still alive and the seed of her hope germinates In her search for the truth of what really happened all those years ago an unexpected romance will flower and the questions that have plagued her for years will be answered Broken Verses is a deeply moving account of love loss and motherhood asking us to reconcile all that we believe about our families An elega

SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA NOVEL AWARD 2017 LONGLISTED FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2017 A GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 AN OBSERVER BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 A TELEGRAPH BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 A NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 AN EVENING STANDARD BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 `Breathtaking' Ali Smith `Powerful' Guardian `Fearless' The Times `Brave and brilliant' Sunday Times How can love survive betrayal? For as long as they can remember, siblings Isma, Aneeka and Parvaiz have had nothing but each other. But darker, stronger forces will divide Parvaiz from his sisters and drive him to the other side of the world, as he sets out to fulfil the dark legacy of the jihadist father he never knew.

The spirit of Elena Ferrante haunts this tale of a friendship forged in Karachi' - Sunday Times'A profound novel about friendship. I loved it to pieces' - Madeline Miller'A shining tour de force' - Ali Smith, Guardian Summer ReadingCHOSEN AS A BOOK OF 2022 BY THE GUARDIAN, OBSERVER, DAILY MAIL AND FINANCIAL TIMES_______________A dazzling new novel of friendship, identity and the unknowability of other people - from the international bestselling author of Home Fire, winner of the Women's Prize for FictionSometimes it was as though the forty years of friendship between them was just a lesson in the unknowability of other people...Maryam and Zahra.In 1988 Karachi, two fourteen-year-old girls are a decade into their friendship, sharing in-jokes, secrets and a love for George Michael. As Pakistan's dictatorship falls and a woman comes to power, the world suddenly seems full of possibilities. Elated by the change in the air, they make a snap decision at a party. That night, everything goes wrong, and the two girls are powerless to change the outcome.Zahra and Maryam.

Home Fire: by Kamila Shamsie | Conversation StartersAfter years of taking care of her twin siblings, Isma finally flies to Massachusetts from London to pursue her graduate degree. But she worries about twins Aneeka and Parvaiz, and the effects of having a jihadi father they barely knew. Parvaiz joins ISIS hoping to know more about his father. Aneeka denounces Isma for telling the police where their brother is. Aneeka then has an affair with the son of Britains home secretary hoping that this will help bring back her brother. But political and religious beliefs are irreconcilable between their families. Will Parvaiz be freed from the jihadis and reconcile with his sisters? This modern-day Antigone, longlisted for the 2017 Man Booker Prize, portrays the conflicts that tear apart lovers, family, law and country.A Brief Look Inside:EVERY GOOD BOOK CONTAINS A WORLD FAR DEEPERthan the surface of its pages. The characters and their world come alive,and the characters and its world still live on.Conversation Starters is peppered with questions designed tobring us beneath the surface of the pageand invite us into the world that lives on.These questions can be used to..Create Hours of Conversation: Foster a deeper understanding of the book Promote an atmosphere of discussion for groups Assist in the study of the book, either individually or corporately Explore unseen realms of the book as never seen before

Isma por fin es libre. Después de años cuidando de sus hermanos gemelos tras la muerte de su madre, y ahora que ambos tienen diecinueve años, ha conseguido su sueño: estudiar en Estados Unidos. Pero Isma no puede evitar preocuparse por su hermana Aneeka, tan bella como tozuda, y por su hermano Parvaiz, que se convierte en su peor pesadilla cuando decide abandonar Londres para unirse al ISIS, tal como hizo su padre, un yihadista que murio en la base aerea de Bagram, en Afganistan.Una vez en Estados Unidos, Isma conoce a Eamonn, un joven atractivo y privilegiado cuyo padre es un poderoso politico britanico de raices musulmanas. A partir de ese instante, el joven entra en la vida de las hermanas y los destinos de ambas familias se entrelazan hasta desencadenar la tragedia.Los desterrados, ambientada en Londres, Estados Unidos y Oriente Medio, se inspira en Antigona y recrea sus grandes temas: desobediencia civil, fidelidad y legalidad. Con todo ello intenta responder a una sola pregunta: ¿que sacrificios estarias dispuesta a hacer por amor?