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Love in a Headscarf

by Shelina Zahra Janmohamed · 2009

At the age of thirteen, I knew that I was destined to marry John Travolta. One day he would arrive on my North London doorstep, fall madly in love with me and ask me to marry him. Then he would convert to Islam and become a… more

22 quotes ★ 3.68 (2,033) Nonfiction

Quotes from the Book

Don’t just hope it happens you have to make it happen
44
You have to know where you’ve come from to know where you are going
30
Islam has rules. Once they are part of your life, you dont notice them anymore.
28
Don’t look for wealth and beauty as these will last only a short time , and then you’ll be left with nothing. Look for piety and faith and you’ll get everything including wealth and beauty with it
17
His smile can lift me out of even the darkest mood
16
love can blind you to their imperfections.
15
You can only ever be complete when you've seen yourself, through someone else's eyes
12
Poetry is designed to inspire love, and islam is about falling in love with the creator of the universe.
11
How can one who’s in love pretend not to be in love?
10
Seeing is not with the eyes, but the heart. That is why love underpinned all our experiences
10
Human  beings like to twist things to meet their own selfish needs.
9
I refused to change the way I practiced my faith or to let fear stop me from carrying out what I believed in.
9
Chemistry could sparkle in z most surprising places and between z most unlikely people.
8
It all comes with time and patience
8
I’m thinking about the discrepancies between what people say is Islam and what Islam actually is!
7
In this modern day, when only what we see is allowed to have certainity, and when scientific data seems to hold the trump card for truth, when only what can be measured exists, love defies all these strictures and dances joyfully before the eyes of human beings, teasing them with the promise of the unknown.
6
The experiences would be richer and more meaningful if I had someone to share them with
6
It is Love that transforms it from black and white, to breathtaking, beautiful inspiring colors
5
Time rarely changed someone’s response to a critical issue
3
The prevailing imagery of Muslim women showed us covered from head to feet in black. The headscarves were long, black, flowing pieces of fabric, draping over a long black cloak, and sometimes with a niqab, a veil, over the faces too, also usually in black. The photographs were taken to make the women look eerie and inhuman, alien to western eyes. But underneath each one was a life, a story, a heart, which was denied by those who saw them just as a ghost covered in black cloth.
Every Muslim woman has aspirations, just like every other human being. The clothing we wear or the acts of faith we carry out do not change any of that. We want to live happy, fulfilled, and successful lives.
what was the point of a social value if it wasn't practiced out in a society? It was like believing that kindness was important, but then not being kind out in public

About Shelina Zahra Janmohamed

We have collected 22 quotes from 1 book by Shelina Zahra Janmohamed on BookQuoters.

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About the book

At the age of thirteen, I knew that I was destined to marry John Travolta. One day he would arrive on my North London doorstep, fall madly in love with me and ask me to marry him. Then he would convert to Islam and become a devoted Muslim.

Shelina is keeping a very surprising secret under her headscarf - she wants to fall in love and find her faith. Torn between the Buxom Aunties, romantic comedies and mosque Imams, she decides to follow the arranged-marriage route to finding Mr Right, Muslim-style. Shelina's captivating journey begins as a search for the one, but along the way she also discovers herself and her faith.

Book details

First published
2009
Goodreads rating
3.68 (2k ratings)

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