BOOKS IN BRIEF
Bayaania Aur Pakistani Bayaania
Professor Dr Zulqarnain Ahmad (Shadab Ehsani)
The first half of the book — a collection of columns that have previously appeared in various publications — is dedicated to observations on the author and his works by a number of personalities including Saeed Khawar, editor at 92 Media Group; columnist Naseem Anjum; former senator Nighat Mirza; and Brig Owais Zameer. An interview of the author with Dr Zakia Rani is followed by his columns on Pakistan’s political, cultural and economic situation, which were published during 2021-22.
Taareekh Ki Azeem Femininst Aurtein (Hayat, Nazariay Aur Tehreekein)
Naeem Mirza
A well-researched volume that, according to human rights activist Tahira Abdullah, is “worthy of being taught in university gender studies departments and used as a reference source of thesis-writing.” It looks at the lives, viewpoints and the socio-political movements of 20 game-changing women, including Fatima Sheikh, widely considered to be India’s first Muslim woman teacher; poet, reformer and educationist Savitribai Phule; scholar and activist Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain; and suffragette Sophia Duleep Singh.
Published in Dawn, Books & Authors, February 5th, 2023