“A funny and frightening narrative of life” – New Statesman (2009 Books of the Year)
“A heavenly read” – Oprah’s O Magazine (Fall Reading List)
“Compelling” – Washington Post
“A pleasure to read” – Indiebound (Dec 09 Notable Book)
NPR Interviews – “Fresh Air with Terry Gross” | “Diane Rehm Show”
Q&A – Philadelphia Weekly
Author Profile in Toronto Star Sunday Edition
A Pakistani American searches for his Islamic identity. From servant of Islam to zealous reformer to reconciliation, a journey of self discovery that goes through the madrassas of Pakistan to the American Bible Belt and beyond.
Order via HarperCollins, Amazon U.S., [UK] [Canada], B&N, Borders, Powell’s, or Indiebound.
Advance Praise
“Elegantly written…thoughtful and wry.”
American Library Association’s magazine Booklist
“An astoundingly frightening, funny, and brave book.”
Fatima Bhutto, Pakistani poet and intellectual
“In this supremely assured, lush, and rip-roaring book, Eteraz manages to do the impossible, gliding confidently over the chasm that divides East and West. Wildly entertaining, Children of Dust is memoir of the first order, as genuinely American as Muslim, unraveling the perilous mystery that is modern Pakistan as only memoir can. Unlike others, Eteraz has truly ‘been there,’ and we are all the better for it. One of the most revealing chronicles of Islamic fundamentalism since Mottahedeh’s classic Mantle of the Prophet.”
Murad Kalam, novelist, author of Night Journey
“A gifted writer…Eteraz is able to create a true-life Islamic bildungsroman as he effortlessly conveys his coming-of-age tale while educating the reader. When his religious awakening finally occurs, his catharsis transcends the page.”
Publisher’s Weekly
“In Children of Dust, Ali Eteraz takes a clear-eyed view of his own coming of age, and chronicles for us the transformations of the 21st century everyman. In prose that is alternately inquiring, humorous, humble and wise, we follow the journey of a soul determined to reconcile the many worlds that live inside him. In a time rife with cultural misinterpretations and generalizations, sensitive accounts such as Children of Dust are invaluable assets.”
Laleh Khadivi, novelist, Emory Fiction Fellow, author of The Age of Orphans
Children of Dust is a gift and a necessity, and should be read by believers and nonbelievers alike. Sure to deepen our collective conversation about religion and reason, loyalty and universality, and our geopolitical aims, it’s also just plain fun to read.”
Yael Goldstein Love, novelist, author of Overture and The Passion of Tasha Darsky
“The gripping story of a young man exposed to both the beauty and ugliness of religion.”
Laila Lalami, novelist, author of Secret Son
Author interview with HarperOne (Youtube)