Light Upon Light by Nur Fadhilah Wahid – Book Review

Thank you to Kube Publishing for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved this book, there were some really great gems and food for thought. A book that I can dip in and out of again and again.

Rating: 4/5

What the book is about:

Light Upon Light is a heartfelt and sincere conversation, sprinkled with humour and self doubt, on the challenges of a modern-day Muslimah. Mostly written while she was traveling, living and studying in Malaysia, South Africa and Yemen, it combines her reflections on a life lived in the awareness of, and gratitude to, Allah.

Rest. Read. Reflect.

What is He trying to tell you?

I read this book throughout Ramadan so I could reflect on the letters and relate it to my own life. I think this is the best way to read this book, so the words of wisdom can really be absorbed.

I really loved that the things she wrote about and reflected on were often everyday observations and that we have all probably had similar interactions and this made it very relatable. I really resonated with several of the letters and even read them out to my husband because I really loved the message.

The way the book is written is so wonderful, it’s easy to read and written with humour so it doesn’t become too heavy yet still deals with really deep thoughts and ideas. I especially loved that the way she reflected showed that the changes in our lives don’t have to big to have a huge impact. Small changes can in fact have really great results.

It reminded me of the hadith: “The dearest of actions to Allah is that which is done regularly, even if it is small.” (Bukhari)

It reminded me that being consistent and making small changes that last is better than one big action that isn’t repeated. The former will have a bigger impact on the long run.

This is a book that resonated with me on a personal level and filled with inspiring, thought provoking letters which ultimately help you build a connection to Allah in a way that doesn’t seem impossible.

It’s a book about working on ourselves to be the best versions of ourselves by making small changes in our lives. It reminded me how important it is to reflect on yourself and your life to see how much you have changed and grown and then we can see where we still need to work on ourselves.

Like she showed us repeatedly in her letters, the change starts within.

I highly recommend picking up this book!

Prayers Of The Pious by Omar Suleiman – Book Review

Thank you to Kube Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love listening to Imam Omar Suleiman’s lectures and have attended some of his courses when he has come to London so I was really excited when I heard that Kube Publishing were releasing a book written by him! This book is developed from his Ramadan lecture series and I absolutely loved it!

Rating: 5/5

Synopsis from Goodreads:

This inspirational collection of prayers and reminders is the perfect companion for anyone who wishes to connect to the Divine. Shaykh Omar Suleiman provides us with thirty short prayers taken from the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad and the early generations, each with a short reminder to deepen the impact of the prayer in our lives.

Prayers of the Pious provides spiritual gems that serve as valuable wisdom and practical advice for the soul. By reading this short work with an attentive heart, the reader can cultivate love for God and His Messenger and live life with gratitude and contentment.

This book has thirty duas from both well known companions and those early generations of Muslims and some that I have never heard of before, I really loved the variety. It was so amazing to read about these people who had such a beautiful connection with Allah and how their duas have been forever remembered by so many people for over a thousand years.

The duas are written in Arabic, there is also the transliteration and the translation in English. I found this really helpful as although I can read Arabic I can’t understand what it says and the transliteration means I can make sure I read the duas correctly. This really helped me to engage with the duas and be able to even memorise them to be able to read them myself.

There are so many beautiful duas in this book that it’s hard to choose which is my favourite. Every single dua included is one to gain closeness to Allah and was perfect to read in Ramadan. Each dua is touching and thought provoking and you can tell it comes from a place of humility and sincerity, which makes the duas even more beautiful.

Omar Suleiman gives the context of each dua, when it was said and why each person made that dua. He then he explains the dua and how we can implement them in our lives. How we can benefit from them so he makes it really relatable to us. I love that he made it relatable as we often hear about these amazing Muslims and feel as though we can never achieve their greatness and it can make people feel as though they aren’t good enough and he shows us that we can be just like them.

Another thing I loved about this book is at the end there is a section where you can write your own duas and there are even prompts to help you write them.

This book is full of inspiring and uplifting gems. It’s a book that you can benefit from time and time again and I know that I will be coming back to these and reading them again. Just reading them gave me a sense of closeness to Allah and I highly recommend you all read this book.

#RamadanReadathon 2019 – Non Fiction Books Recommendation

Ramadan is fast approaching and that means it’s also time for the Ramadan Readathon! I love taking part and Nadia does such a wonderful job hosting it every year!

For this years readathon there is also a bingo card and there will be several posts over the course of the week sharing book recommendations for each of the prompts! So keep an eye out on the Ramadan Readathons social media page to read them all and help you choose what books to read this month!

I am going to share with you some books that I think are perfect reads for Ramadan!

Some are books that help us with our spirituality and connecting with Allah and others are books that give us insight into the lives of Muslims and their achievements.

1 Reclaim You Heart by Yasmin Mogahed – I cannot explain to you how much I love this book. It’s a book that you can read again and again and still benefit from it. I also highly recommend her other book, Love and Happiness.

2 Revive Your Heart by Nouman Ali Khan – another wonderful book that covers so many issues we deal with in today’s society

3 Prayers of the Pious by Omar Suleiman – this book released recently and it has 30 duas (supplications) to help us and it’s perfect for you to learn one everyday in Ramadan

4 Muhammad: How He Can Make You Extraordinary by Hesham Al-Awadi – this book is really unique in the sense that it is not only a biography of the Prophet (pbuh) but how we can learn from the way he lived and incorporate it into our lives

5 The Productive Muslim by Mohammad Faris – this book navigates all aspects of our lives and helps us to better ourselves and develop good habits and break bad ones.

6 It’s Not About The Burqa edited by Mariam Khan – this book is so needed and I absolutely loved the essays in this book.

7 Lost Islamic History by Firas Al-Khateeb – this book covers a lot of Islamic history and is a really interesting read

8 When the Moon Split by Saifur Rahman Mubarakpuri – a biography of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and one of my favourites

9 Women in the Quran by Asma Lambert – it’s really great reading about these inspirational women that are spoken about in the Quran

10 Al-Muhaddithaat: The Women Scholars in Islam by Akram Nadwi – such a wonderful book filled with some amazing women throughout history

So these are some of my favourite books I highly recommend reading them and if you want any other recommendations for any other type of book please do ask! I have A LOT more books I could recommend!

When Wings Expand by Mehdad Maryam Sinclair – Book Review

Thank you to publishers Kube Publishing for sending me a copy of this book. This does not affect my review.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Writing on the pages of her journal, Nur, a teenage girl in Canada, charts the onset and advance of her mother’s cancer. Nur watches her mother’s body begin to shrink and her mood begin to darken. And when family and friends begin to encroach, Nur must face the prospect of her mother’s looming death.

Nur bears the crushing loss and finds her adolescent life more demanding and complex. But with the legacy of her mother’s love, her family’s support, and the guidance of her faith, she manages to overcome the searing pain and use her newfound strength to bring joy to the lives of others, showing them that after death wings can expand.

This story is set in Canada and follows the life of a young girl, Nur and her family who are struggling to come to terms with losing her mother to cancer. It’s written in short diary entries, written by Nur, and because of this we really get to see how she is truly feeling. We go through all her stages of grief and struggle and eventual hope at being able to continue her life without her mother in such a personal way.

She also writes about her struggles between her identity as a Muslim and balancing it with living in the west and being a teenager. The Islamic references in this are so wonderfully woven in and do not feel preachy at all. I really loved the Muslim rep in this book!

This story had me teary all the way through so I would warn you to keep a box of tissues handy! As I’m writing this I’m trying to express how much I loved this book. It’s a book that is not only a wonderful story but also something that teenagers can read and relate to and even help deal with their own struggles especially dealing with loss of a loved one. This is a book I wish I had when I was younger especially having lost my granddad as a teenager, I really struggled with it.

I really loved how the author showed a realistic view of how someone suffering from grief can be, how Nur would struggle with accepting what had happened even though she had faith in God. At the end when she meets a young girl with cancer who is finding it difficult to come to terms with it, I love how Nur helps her. It was a wonderful way of showing how to help someone who is going through a difficult time. Honestly I loved this book so much!

I loved the way she used a caterpillar turning into a butterfly as a metaphor for how life changes and even though we may want it to stand still we could continue on to something even more beautiful than what we had, if we only had faith.

I was putting off reading it as I knew it would be a book that would make me cry but I am so glad I read it. It is heart breaking at times but also so heart warming. It’s such a well written book and I am really looking forward to reading more books by this author.

So as you can tell I loved this book and definitely recommend you all to read it, it’s a book that no matter the age you will be able to relate to but I would especially recommend teens/young adults to pick it up!

Rating: 4.5/5