Reading · Haneen’s Substack

Unfortunately, due to Employment™ *distant screams in the background* I did not reach my reading goal in 2025. I have been struggling with maintaining focus and replacing the habit of being on my phone with something more beneficial for me, but anyways, this is not the time for a journal entry, let’s talk about books!!!!!

Last year, I ranked my books read in categories from worst to best, however this year I will be reviewing them in chronological order from when I had read them, and giving a star rating too.

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Anxious People by Fredrik Backman - ☆ ☆ ☆

I found this on Libby and was intrigued by the plot, and honestly, it was pretty fun. I remember listening to it on my way to my first job of the year and I also remember liking it a lot better than A Man Called Ove. Also, I would recommend it as an audiobook over reading a physical copy, as I still find Backman’s writing style a little jarring and kind of In Your Face, it’s a lot easier to not be annoyed when you’re listening to it. A lot of fun characters, a lot of random scenes, but a very heartfelt book and enjoyable time overall.

Little sidenote: In my quest to make new friends after The Move™, my friend (Abeedah!!!!) invited me to a bookclub in December (12 months from when I had finished it) and this was the book they were in the middle of reading! I thought that was a lovely coincidence.

In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

*Can you become a man without becoming your father?*

Unbelievably well-written. I truly believe that Hisham Matar is one of the best writers of our generation. I find that it’s hard to properly execute stories written from the perspective of a younger character, but this was done so incredibly well. Gorgeous way of writing. I found this very poignant, quite heavy, and I highly highly highly recommend reading.

Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

No one writes a thriller that mysteriously encapsulates so much of the female experience better than Daphne Du Maurier, and I absolutely love her for this. Excellent book, my heart was racing the entire time. Another thought that I had while reading this (I am fully aware, fictional story) was that I hope all men can one day perish. That is all.

Everything Is Tuberculosis by John Green - ☆

I did learn Some things but also this was very grating. It’s easy to digest and pretty accessible, but it’s almost oversimplified to the point where it’s a bit useless. I think I would like to read more on the topic though, but maybe from a more educated author. Everyone on Goodreads was giving this book a 1 star rating because they are against free healthcare for all countries which is probably ~~definitely~~ one of the worst takes of all time.. someone needs to check if our American friends are okay in the head. Anyways, the reason for the extremely low rating on my part is because I googled “John Green Palestine” after listening to this and got pissed off lol.

Public service announcement: Palestine is my moral compass and an author that is neutral/isn’t vehemently anti-colonisation (EVERYWHERE not just in certain parts of the world) isn’t someone I ever want to support hence the 1 star review.

Prophet Song by Paul Lynch - ☆ ☆ ☆

*Where does all our love go when once we held it beating in our hand?*

While difficult to get into due to the writing style and the (very) slow nature of the book, when it picked up (more than) halfway through, I literally couldn’t put it down. Also I sobbed, and I love when a book makes me sob! Very reminiscent of The Road by Cormac McCarthy, and definitely not an easy read.

The Fall by Albert Camus - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

In any case, here it is: I have never been really able to believe that human affairs were serious matters. I had no idea where the serious might lie, except that it was not in all this I saw around me—which seemed to me merely an amusing game, or tiresome. There are really efforts and convictions I have never been able to understand.

Two things can be true at the same time…I believe Camus was a loser and we would have probably Hated each other if by some strange way we had crossed paths, but I also believe that.. he might’ve been a genius. I don’t know!!!

There’s nothing I hate more than praising a French person, but I must be honest with myself first and foremost, and he’s truly one of my favourite writers of all time. I love his style in a way that I cannot explain - it keeps me so engaged. Reading his deranged characters thoughts is always an Experience. I’m sorry to disappoint you all, but unfortunately, I thought this was excellent.

The World Keeps Ending, and the World Goes On by Franny Choi - ☆ ☆

*Lord, I confess, I want the clarity of catastrophe but not the catastrophe.*

Beautiful title, beautiful cover, very mid poetry. Asides from a couple paragraphs, this was unfortunately quite unmemorable for me.

The Coin by Yasmin Zaher - ☆

*By the time we know ourselves, we are already.*

If you liked My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, you will probably like this (derogatory). Actually, I found The Coin even worse; boring, random, trying too hard to be Deep™ yet failing miserably. Not my cup of tea.

Intermezzo by Sally Rooney - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

*In nature, he thinks, there is no such thing as ugliness. It's like he tried to tell Margaret in the car, beauty belongs to God, and ugliness to human beings.*

Sally Rooney means a lot to me. I vividly remember the very first time I read one of her books - December, London, 20 years old, started reading at 7 PM and didn’t go to bed until after 2 AM, where I had finished the book in its entirety and cried my heart out. I can never put her books down and Intermezzo was no exception.

Her writing evokes a very strange anxiety in me. I find that she is capable of crafting characters and relationships that seem so absurd and so far away from me, yet so unbelievably realistic and almost too embarrassingly close. I sometimes have to pause and remind myself to exhale while reading as I almost feel caught out.

A disclaimer: I’m not recommending this book to you as it is VERY…Greasy.. for lack of better words. I am just sharing my feelings here, no one is allowed to use this against me. It’s illegal.

Perfect Victims by Mohammed El-Kurd - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

*I am grateful for my disdain, for it is dignifying; it reminds me that I am human.*

My favourite book of the year, and definitely one of my favourite books of all time. Excellently written, surprisingly unapologetic (not for Mohammed, but for English books on the topic in general), truly one of the most important reads on Palestine. I wish it was longer, I honestly did not want it to finish. A book I would reread over and over and over again.

Madonna in a Fur Coat by Sabahattin Ali - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Two very unwell characters gifting us with one of the greatest stories about love, risk, sacrifice, family, and courage. White Nights WISHES she could be her.

A View from the Bridge by Arthur Miller - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

I will say, I agree with Eddie on One Thing Only which is that you should NEVER trust a blonde man (EVER). I read this in one sitting on a Saturday night on our living room couch while everyone was asleep, and when I finished it, I wanted to scream like a banshee into the abyss. Beyond gripping. Arthur Miller will forever be my favourite playwright.

What We Think About When We Think About Football by Simon Critchley - ☆ ☆

*Football opens up a particular dimension in the experience of time.*

This had so much potential but ended up being so boring and tedious. All the chapters were extremely surface level, the author didn’t delve into ANYTHING properly it was just topic statement after topic statement. I found myself wishing he would tackle ~~(see what I did there?)~~ any topic, even if just for a little bit. Also.. I don’t care about Liverpool as much as he does so I was just a bit like…. Ok girl… during his fangirl moments.

I did like a few sentences here and there and reading the book reminded me of how much I used to love football so I will give him that, but all in all, I thought it was wasted potential. I’d recommend Eduardo Galeano’s Soccer in Sun and Shadow instead.

The Soul of a Woman by Isabel Allende - ☆ ☆

*Many of us daughters have had to live the lives that our mothers could not.*

I can’t tell if it’s the fault of the translation or the actual author, but this felt very robotic and badly written. In all honesty, I’ve been finding it more and more difficult to read a book on feminism by non-muslim female authors and actually enjoy it nowadays.

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad - ☆ ☆ ☆

One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This - The Guardian Bookshop — It is an admirable thing, in a politics possessed of a moral floor, to believe one can change the system from the inside, that with enough respectful prodding the establishment can be made to bend, like that famous arc, toward justice. But when, after decades of such thinking, decades of respectful prodding, the condition one arrives at is reticent acceptance of genocide, is it not at least worth considering that you are not changing the system nearly as much as the system is changing you?

Honestly it’s a good book; beautiful title, many beautifully written parts, but it was lacking structure and ultimately felt very scattered. Strong, but not strong enough in my opinion. I would still recommend it, but 100% would nominate Perfect Victims over this, and I think coming across it before Akkad’s book definitely impacted this reading experience.

It Lasts Forever and Then It’s Over by Anne de Marcken - ☆ ☆ ☆

Very strange, very good, very fever-dreamy, very reminiscent of Max Porter’s work - I sobbed like a baby when I finished reading, which, as aforementioned, is always an automatic Plus in my books.

Qur’an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman’s Perspective by Amina Wadud - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

*It was not the text which restricted women, but the interpretations of that text which have come to be held in greater importance than the text itself.*

Truly one of the best Islamic books I have read, on this subject, and just in general. I had to stop myself from highlighting the entire thing. I’ve been wanting to read this since I was 15 and it did not disappoint in the slightest. It’s easily digestible, flows in an incredible way, and tackles actually important topics excellently and respectfully, all while still being under 150 pages.

When Only God Can See: The Faith of Muslim Political Prisoners by Walaa Quisay and Asim Qureshi - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

When Only God Can See - Pluto Press — *To compassionately listen to the survivor is to take their side. In contrast, to do nothing is also to take a side.*

Such a painful and heavy book, and it should inspire us all to act against those who oppress our brothers and sisters around the world. It took me so long to complete this as I had to keep putting it down for my own sanity (I had to skip the sexual assault chapter as it was too much for me to handle). Reading this has reinforced in my brain just how much evil exists within this world, something that, due to a lack of awareness and knowledge, used to feel almost incomprehensible to me before the last couple of years.

My only criticism is that I believe the book could’ve used a more thorough edit, but I still highly highly highly recommend this as a read. It will make you put everything happening in your life into perspective and force you to start taking action rather than waiting around passively.

The Return by Hisham Matar - ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

*I was now fifteen. I was now forty-one. I was now eight.*

I would like to emphasise my praise for Matar once again after reading The Return; truly incredible writing style. I found this slower than In the Country of Men, and liked it a little less, but that’s most likely due to the fact that it’s a memoir. I think about this sentence excerpted in this book on the daily:

A vague, unfathomable emotion lurked secretly in his heart; he was sad with a sadness that had nothing noble in it.

This book, the author’s feelings towards reading in general, and this sentence in particular, inspired the title of this post. There is no greater feeling than to come across something written by another human being (centuries ago!) that resonates so deeply with how you feel at that particular moment in time.

Oh and also, in my very humble opinion, anyone that supports Gaddafi is a donkey cosplaying as a human being and most likely needs to get their brain checked. Fun little political burst from yours truly! These will happen frequently the more we get to know each other.

Somebody Loves You by Mona Arshi - ☆ ☆

Some parts are beautifully written, but I have to say, a lot of the chapters don’t convey much at all (if anything). Also, I feel like it was just starting to get good and then it ended all of a sudden which was very disappointing.

Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein - ☆

The Worst Read of 2025 goes to the last book on this list. Hector Bellerin, how could you do this to me, I trusted you, you silly spanish goose..

I couldn’t bring myself to finish this. She kept yapping on and on and on and on…. and about what… I can’t even remember!!!! Halfway through I had an Epiphany on how much I do not care about this random woman’s thoughts. No offence to miss Klein, she might be a good person, but I wouldn’t know as this book drove me insane. I couldn’t even reach the part about Palestine because of how much I realised I didn’t care about what she had to say. Girl get to the point!!!! Sorry.

Not my best reading year, but I discovered a few gems which I am very grateful for.

My reading goals for 2026 are to be more selective with the books I choose to read; more Arabic, more Spanish, more books by my favourite authors. I want to buy and gift more books. I want to talk about books more often. I want to read more Islamic history, politics, poetry. I want to reintroduce fun fiction again and make reading feel less like a chore and more like the escape it is meant to be. I want to read my friends’ and family’s favourite books.

I really believe that reading has saved me multiple times in the past and will continue to save me in the future, and I hope my love for reading only grows from here.

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