Book Talk - Zahid Rafiq: The World with its Mouth Open
In eleven stories, The World With Its Mouth Open follows the inner lives of people in Kashmir as they walk the uncertain terrain of their days, fractured from years of war. From a shopkeeper’s encounter with a mannequin, to an expectant mother walking on a precarious road, to a young boy wavering between dreams and reality, to two dogs wandering the city, these stories weave in larger, devastating themes of loss, grief, violence, longing, and injustice with the threads of smaller, everyday realities that confront the characters’ lives in profound ways. Although the stories circle the darker aspects of life, they are—at the same time—an attempt to run into life, into humor, into beauty, into another person who can offer refuge, if momentarily.
Speakers
Zahid Rafiq is a writer living in Srinagar, Kashmir. He was a journalist for several years before turning to writing fiction. "The World With Its Mouth Open" is his first book. The format of the book talk will be as follows: a reading from book, followed by conversation between Syeed and Rafiq, and then a brief Q&A session with the audience, moderated by Syeed.
Nafeesa Syeed is Lecturer in English & Associate Research Scholar at Yale University. An award-winning journalist, Nafeesa Syeed has worked across the U.S., South Asia, Middle East, and North and East Africa over two decades. Most recently, she was an opinion editor at the Los Angeles Times, where she edited policy op-eds, narrative essays, and book reviews.
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