It's a pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Truth Be Told by Kia Abdullah.
About the Author
Kia Abdullah is an author, journalist and travel writer. She has contributed to the Guardian, BBC, and Channel 4 News, and most recently the New York Times commenting on a variety of issues affecting the Muslim community. Kia currently travels the world as one half of the travel blog Atlas & Boots, atlasandboots.com, which receives over 100,000 views per month.
Follow @KiaAbdullah on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit kiaabdullah.com, Buy Truth Be Told
Follow @KiaAbdullah on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit kiaabdullah.com, Buy Truth Be Told
About the book
Are You Ready to Start this Conversation?
Kamran Hadid feels invincible. He attends Hampton school, an elite all-boys boarding school in London, he comes from a wealthy family, and he has a place at Oxford next year. The world is at his feet. And then a night of revelry leads to a drunken encounter and he must ask himself a horrific question.
With the help of assault counsellor, Zara Kaleel, Kamran reports the incident in the hopes that will be the end of it. But it’s only the beginning…
If you haven't read Take it Back by Kia Abdullah, then I can only recommend you do. It's a cracking read, as is this one. This book does give some backstory to be able to understand the main character, her choices and what drives her to help certain people though.
This time Zara Haleel gets involved in case of a young affluent man, who is sexually assaulted. The story delves into the repercussions for both men and the reactions of those around them. It really addresses the stigma attached to male on male assaults and why men are even less likely to come forward and report it than women.
'Is this what women go through?' - Perhaps one of the most poignant and reflective moments in the story. Where the injustice and inequality directed towards victims suddenly dawns on the privileged young man.
The constant battle to live up to the expectations of masculinity and the patriarchal system, which allows no understanding or loopholes for those who don't fall under the category of heterosexual and Muslim. You can't be both gay and be Muslim - a sentence often repeated and bandied about by author in an attempt to strip the walls of prejudice and religious dogma down. To examine the thought process behind this statement of fact, something the fervent religious community believes to be cemented in religious law, albeit they are merely moral judgements and commandments written by men for men.
The same of course can be said for Christianity. The interpretation of scripture often lends itself to the oppression of many and anything deemed not the 'norm' in whatever given era we live in.
I think it is a relevant and timely piece of fiction given the #MeToo era, especially given the fact and clear statistics that male rape is still stigmatised and many men never come forward to report their assaults, because of the reaction they will and do receive. Coming out as a victim or rather a survivor of a sexual assault casts men in the role of a lack of masculinity or an assumption of sexual preference, which then puts their lack of consent into question. Women ask for it - men must be gay if they're raped. Men can't be raped by women because they have a biological reaction, which suggests pleasure and so on.
It's a read that asks the reader to question the preconceptions we have about sexual assault and our reactions to it. The way the media portrays both victim and alleged perpetrator and of course the way both our judicial and police systems are still inadequate when it comes to dealing with cases of sexual assault regardless of the gender of the victim.
Abdullah is adept at giving the reader a riveting read that delivers food for thought. She doesn't shy away from the uncomfortable truths of cultures, religion and what people really believe in such cases, despite what they may say to the world.
This time Zara Haleel gets involved in case of a young affluent man, who is sexually assaulted. The story delves into the repercussions for both men and the reactions of those around them. It really addresses the stigma attached to male on male assaults and why men are even less likely to come forward and report it than women.
'Is this what women go through?' - Perhaps one of the most poignant and reflective moments in the story. Where the injustice and inequality directed towards victims suddenly dawns on the privileged young man.
The constant battle to live up to the expectations of masculinity and the patriarchal system, which allows no understanding or loopholes for those who don't fall under the category of heterosexual and Muslim. You can't be both gay and be Muslim - a sentence often repeated and bandied about by author in an attempt to strip the walls of prejudice and religious dogma down. To examine the thought process behind this statement of fact, something the fervent religious community believes to be cemented in religious law, albeit they are merely moral judgements and commandments written by men for men.
The same of course can be said for Christianity. The interpretation of scripture often lends itself to the oppression of many and anything deemed not the 'norm' in whatever given era we live in.
I think it is a relevant and timely piece of fiction given the #MeToo era, especially given the fact and clear statistics that male rape is still stigmatised and many men never come forward to report their assaults, because of the reaction they will and do receive. Coming out as a victim or rather a survivor of a sexual assault casts men in the role of a lack of masculinity or an assumption of sexual preference, which then puts their lack of consent into question. Women ask for it - men must be gay if they're raped. Men can't be raped by women because they have a biological reaction, which suggests pleasure and so on.
It's a read that asks the reader to question the preconceptions we have about sexual assault and our reactions to it. The way the media portrays both victim and alleged perpetrator and of course the way both our judicial and police systems are still inadequate when it comes to dealing with cases of sexual assault regardless of the gender of the victim.
Abdullah is adept at giving the reader a riveting read that delivers food for thought. She doesn't shy away from the uncomfortable truths of cultures, religion and what people really believe in such cases, despite what they may say to the world.
Buy Truth Be Told at Amazon UK or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ: pub date 3 Sept. 2020. Buy at Amazon com.
Read my review of Take it Back by Kia Abdullah.
