Muslim Women’s Popular Fiction

Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) Research Network (funding awarded)

Over the last decade, readers, publishers, and booksellers have noted a surge in popularity of genre works written by Muslim women, particularly in the Anglosphere. This project aims to bring together researchers to examine the global turn in popular fiction, and the concurrent “popular turn” in Muslim women’s writing through a focus on popular and genre writing by Muslim women (including romance, chick lit, detective fiction, Young Adult, fantasy, life writing, and science fiction) from a range of critical disciplinary perspectives.

Project Investigator:
Dr Amy Burge, University of Birmingham, UK

Project Co-Investigator:
Dr Peter Cherry, Bilkent University, Turkey

Leader of Hong Kong Node:
Dr Lucinda Newns, Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

“

When was the last time you heard a Muslim woman speak for herself without a filter? Or outside the white gaze? On her own terms? Or outside the narrative built around us by the media and governments?

Muslim Women’s Popular Fiction

Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) Research Network (funding awarded)

“

When was the last time you heard a Muslim woman speak for herself without a filter? Or outside the white gaze? On her own terms? Or outside the narrative built around us by the media and governments?

— Mariam Khan, “Introduction”, It’s Not About the Burqa, p. 1