ACCLAIMED Canadian author Uzma Jalaluddin announced herself with awesome debut novel Ayesha At Last, which was compared to Jane Austen classic Pride And Prejudice. Her recently released second novel Hana Khan Carries On has continued her impressive momentum as a writer and the story about the rivalry between two competing halal restaurants has been compared to hit Hollywood movie You’ve Got Mail.
The root of her impressive writing ability is directly connected to a deep love for reading from a young age and with that in mind Eastern Eye got Uzma Jalaluddin to select 10 books she loves.
Before making her selection, she said: “It is impossible to have a top 10 of all time, for voracious readers like me, so this is my top 10 currently at the top of my mind and in no particular order.”
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth: This is a classic, hilarious, nuanced, and a multi-generational tale set in India.
Anne of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery: The classic Canadian children’s novel about a redhaired orphan girl growing up in Canada’s smallest province, Prince Edward Island.
Three Cheers for Me by Donald Jack: This is an obscure but hilarious novel about a World War One bumbling solider.
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams: A cult sci-fi comedy that made me laugh very hard.
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid: A contemporary novel that brilliantly explores issues of race.
Act Like It by Lucy Parker: A fun romance by one of my favourite authors, set in the world of the London theatre scene.
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri: The classic literary novel by the great Jhumpa Lahiri is a great exploration of second generation south Asian identity in the United States.
Laughing All The Way To The Mosque by Zarqa Nawaz: A hilarious memoir by producer, writer, and Canadian Muslim comedian and creator of the hit Canadian television show, Little Mosque on the Prairie.
Better Luck Next Time by Kate Hilton: A hilarious and timely portrait of a complicated family whose matriarch is a feminist icon.
A Deadly Divide by Ausma Zehanat Khan: A fascinating crime novel that takes place in the aftermath of a mosque shooting in Toronto.
Visit www.uzmajalaluddin. com, Twitter @UzmaWrites & Instagram @UzmaJalaluddin
Agatha Christie boarding the EET Salon at lunchtime on the train from Bulawayo to the Cape. In 1922 Agatha Christie set sail on a 10-month voyage around the world. Her husband Archie had been invited to join a trade mission to promote the British Empire Exhibition and Agatha was determined to go with him The Christie Archive Trust
Agatha Christie under a tree on Honolulu beach after surfing, 1922. Agatha and her husband Archie were permitted to take a short holiday away from the 1922 trade mission and chose Honolulu where they learnt how to surf on longboards. Here Agatha purchased a surf suit in the local style, better suited to the demands of surfing than her swim attire for bathing in Torquay. The Christie Archive Trust
Agatha Christie relaxing during a sightseeing tour, Tajoura, Libya, 1955. Agatha and her second husband, archaeologist Max Mallowan had invited Agatha's daughter Rosalind and grandson Mathew to join them on a tour of the ancient sites of Leptis Magna and Sabratah during December 1955. The Christie Archive Trust
Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express, 201720th Century Studios
Still from Murder on the Orient Express, 201720th Century Studios
Still from And Then There Were None, 2015, BBC Agatha Christie Limited
Still from And Then There Were None, 2015, BBCAgatha Christie Limited
Still from And Then There Were None, 2015, BBCAgatha Christie Limited
Agatha Christie’s Remington typewriter from 1937 The Christie Archive Trust
Agatha Christie’s Remington typewriter from 1937The Christie Archive Trust
Agatha Christie’s study notes for her pharmaceutical exam taken in 1917The Christie Archive Trust
Letter from Agatha Christie to her second husband Max Mallowan, in December 1930. Agatha writes to Max describing her return home from their honeymoon, on the Orient Express. Documenting how the train had been halted by floods and her fellow travellers' reactions, this event would inspire her to write Murder on the Orient Express a few years later.The Christie Archive Trust
Cover of typescript ofHouse of Beauty, Agatha Christie’s first short story written when she was just a teenager.The Christie Archive Trust
Box for Tabloid Veronal tablets,1910-1940 Science Museum Group
Chemical storage bottle and glass stopper, labelled ‘POISON phosphorus P’,1907-1912Science Museum Group
Empty poison bottle for aconite, iodine and chloretone solution,1925-1960Science Museum Group
Newby Teas
