Fanshawe welcomes Canada Read's finalist Kamal Al-Solaylee
For the final lecture of Fanshawe’s
Letters and Arts Society
Reading Series, journalist and author
Kamal Al-Solaylee came to
speak about his 2012 book, Intolerance:
A Memoir of Extremes on
March 17. Intolerance was a 2015
finalist in CBC’s Canada Reads
contest, of which the theme was
“One book to break barriers”.
Born in Yemen, and then exiled with his family to Beirut and then Cairo before finishing his PhD in England and eventually moving to Canada, Al-Solaylee wanted to give people a better understanding of the Middle East with his book.
“I want them to understand that the pictures they see of crazy people roaming around the Middle East and the Arab world do not tell the full story… It would be kind of nice to go a little bit deeper than the headline or the 30-second news segment, and to perhaps understand that there are people just like them over there.”
He feels that while his book was well received, winning the Toronto Book Award and being nominated for Canada Reads among other awards, it may not have been what people were expecting. Al-Solaylee said that people were expecting it to be a history of the Middle East as opposed to a personal story, and others were hoping for more details, but he wanted readers to be able to get through the book in a couple of sittings.
It was also difficult for him as a journalist to change the focus from other peoples’ stories to his own.
“That was the hardest thing about writing both the article that became the source for this book, From Bikini to Burka in The Globe and writing this book because I’m used to asking the questions… I’ve been particularly private and almost secretive about my family life, I never shared that even with close friends.”
He added that he is still uncomfortable with sharing such personal details with readers that are not only Canadian, but are all over the world that will have access to the e-book, but the length of time since the book was published has made it easier for him to say that he’s written about his life.
“That was the book, but that’s the end of that journey now.”
Al-Solaylee also had some advice for new Canadians arriving from the Middle East, saying that he would tell them that they’d arrived in one of the best countries, if not the best country in the world, and that it’s a welcoming and safe place. He added that they may have to make some adjustments.
“If they want others to give them their freedom they also have to respect other people’s freedoms, and that includes gay rights, women’s rights and the right of everyone to think and believe what they want to, and I know this will get me into trouble, but to kind of leave part of the Middle East behind, and come here with an open mind and open heart.”
Al-Solaylee is an associate professor of journalism at Ryerson University in Toronto, and wrote his memoir after a long time of writing theatre reviews for The Globe and Mail. He has another book of non-fiction on the way entitled Brown, which he describes as an exploration of what it means to be brown skinned in the world today.
Born in Yemen, and then exiled with his family to Beirut and then Cairo before finishing his PhD in England and eventually moving to Canada, Al-Solaylee wanted to give people a better understanding of the Middle East with his book.
“I want them to understand that the pictures they see of crazy people roaming around the Middle East and the Arab world do not tell the full story… It would be kind of nice to go a little bit deeper than the headline or the 30-second news segment, and to perhaps understand that there are people just like them over there.”
He feels that while his book was well received, winning the Toronto Book Award and being nominated for Canada Reads among other awards, it may not have been what people were expecting. Al-Solaylee said that people were expecting it to be a history of the Middle East as opposed to a personal story, and others were hoping for more details, but he wanted readers to be able to get through the book in a couple of sittings.
It was also difficult for him as a journalist to change the focus from other peoples’ stories to his own.
“That was the hardest thing about writing both the article that became the source for this book, From Bikini to Burka in The Globe and writing this book because I’m used to asking the questions… I’ve been particularly private and almost secretive about my family life, I never shared that even with close friends.”
He added that he is still uncomfortable with sharing such personal details with readers that are not only Canadian, but are all over the world that will have access to the e-book, but the length of time since the book was published has made it easier for him to say that he’s written about his life.
“That was the book, but that’s the end of that journey now.”
Al-Solaylee also had some advice for new Canadians arriving from the Middle East, saying that he would tell them that they’d arrived in one of the best countries, if not the best country in the world, and that it’s a welcoming and safe place. He added that they may have to make some adjustments.
“If they want others to give them their freedom they also have to respect other people’s freedoms, and that includes gay rights, women’s rights and the right of everyone to think and believe what they want to, and I know this will get me into trouble, but to kind of leave part of the Middle East behind, and come here with an open mind and open heart.”
Al-Solaylee is an associate professor of journalism at Ryerson University in Toronto, and wrote his memoir after a long time of writing theatre reviews for The Globe and Mail. He has another book of non-fiction on the way entitled Brown, which he describes as an exploration of what it means to be brown skinned in the world today.
