Pieces of a paki, Yusuf Misdaq's debut novel... features possibly the most endearing literary protagonist since J.D. Salinger's Holden Caulfield. It is the extraordinarily frank and delightful character of Jonathan, rather than the plot, that drives the story forward. Written with effortless, yet thought-provoking charm, Misdaq takes the readers on an emotional discovery through a story that constantly defies both reader expectations and the norm. - EMEL Magazine

As a first novel, Misdaq should be proud of his creation, a simple yet sly indictment of life in the last 5 years and where it’ll send us if we continue to worship at the altar of celebrities and fictional wars. Misdaq shares the wide-eyed optimism leading to world-weariness exhibited by bands like Belle and Sebastian and Radiohead, and his writing is sweet and simple and free of oppositional metaphor. - Indian Electronica

It is Britain in 2025. King Charles is reigning. Richard & Judy are still presenting. Britain is booming, creatively and economically. Most people are very happy. Ronan Keating is a social-activist and Brad Pitt's left leg is going to explode any moment now. The pocket of xenophobic groups in Britain call any non-white person a 'Paki' and try their hardest to stir up trouble. America is eating itself in the midst of civil war, George Bush the 2nd, President of the Republic of Texas, is trying to invade California. The hawk-ish government in Britain is at odds with King Charles over immigration, and also intent, for some reason, to invade Brazil.

Then there's a little boy who grows into a little man in the midst of this strange, real world. His parents are rich, filthy rich. His father is strange, his mother calls him a 'paki' and his aunt teaches him the benefits of organic food. He grows and grows into a man through isolation, school, drugs, a trip to Morocco, a friendship with a Brazilian footballer, and a moon-landing.

A coming-of-age and utopian/dystopian novel rolled into one, Pieces of a Paki is filled with humour, tender moments of humanity, optimistic insights into successful multi-culturalism in Britain, and guarded comments on mankind's artificial innovations. A beautiful story for people with open-hearts.

-Amazon

NOTE: To purchase a signed copy through Amazon, be sure to click on 'used and new' and buy your copy from the seller nefisa-uk.

Inspiration comes in moments, those moments when you feel great, when you feel like the world is in your hands, and everything is possible. It can also come when you're really low, and when that happens the writing becomes your medicine, and it doesn't seem like inspiration, it's just a lifeline. This book had both those kinds of inspiration. - Interview


photo: Janine Storm van Leeuwen