Shaila Abdullah

Shaila Abdullah


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Noted as "Word Artist" by critics, Shaila Abdullah is an award-winning author and designer based in Austin, Texas. Her creative work focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of Pakistani women and their often unconventional choices in life.

Abdullah's new novel "Saffron Dreams" explores the tragedy of 9/11 from the perspective of a Muslim widow. She received a grant from Hobson Foundation for that body of work. Her debut book, "Beyond the Cayenne Wall," is a collection of stories about Pakistani women struggling to find their individualities despite the barriers imposed by society. The collection won the Norumbega Jury Prize for Outstanding Fiction and the DIY Festival Award, among other accolades.

Saffron Dreams

Shaila Abdullah
Modern History Press (2009)
ISBN 9781932690736
Reviewed by Olivera Baumgartner-Jackson for Reader Views (10/08)

Synopsis: From the darkest hour of American history emerges a mesmerizing tale of tender love, a life interrupted, and faith recovered. Arissa Illahi, a Muslim artist and writer, discovers in a single moment that no matter how carefully you map your life, it is life itself that chooses your destiny. After her husband's death in the collapse of the World Trade Center, the discovery of his manuscript marks Arissa's reconnection to life. Her unborn son and the unfinished novel fuse in her mind into one life-defining project that becomes, at once, the struggle for her emotional survival and the redemption of her race.