5/20/2023 0 Comments The butterfly mosqueBut religion in a mature, confident manner. I almost wanted to say this book is without religion, but that’s entirely wrong. Yes, she explains why Islam attracted her and talks about her steps toward it but she’s confident in her own ways and thus, doesn’t hamper her memoir with “why my faith is so awesome” which many other religion-centered memoirs do. Something I greatly admire about Wilson is that she never once justifies her faith. This is a story about the creation and evolution of love and of family, as much as a story about her faith. One thing that stood out in The Butterfly Mosque was Wilson’s warmth to her world and the people around her. And Wilson certainly does not take the easy path. I highly relate to taking the path that works best for oneself instead of the easy road. While Wilson and I live very different lives, I was drawn in by both the beauty and truth in The Butterfly Mosque and the telling of a story about building an identity that is different from the various ones prescribed by society - whether American, Muslim, or Egyptian, in this case - and standing up for what works for her. (Also we live in the same awesome city of Seattle.) Wilson’s memoir is about her conversion to Islam, about her marriage to an Egyptian man, and about forging her own identity as an American Muslim learning to live in Egypt and the Middle East in a post-9/11 world. Which seems like an odd thing to say about a memior, particularly one by someone still alive and who’s only a year older than myself. Willow Wilson’s The Butterfly Mosque hard.
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