Scan barcode
mazza's review
4.0
Set in a tower block within South London’s Muslim community, The Study Circle by Haroun Khan (published October 2018 by Dead Ink Books) combines old and new thought to create a realistic, yet often unheard, voice of modern urban Britain.
We follow the lives of Shams and Ishaq, two distant friends who are reunited during a time of escalating troubled relationships between their faith, and the rest of the country. With an upcoming EDL march and increased external interest in their Muslim study group, the story is set in the present day, raising questions of belonging, traditionalism and community.
The main characters of Ishaq and Shams are what drive the entire novel. Each is simply surviving in this chaotic community, fuelled by outside influences and a desire to belong yet remain unique. We journey through the novel as both young men begin to understand how and what it means to be a young person of faith in present-day London. Ishaq must decide whether or not to denounce the traditional life in his tower block and continue onto ‘better’ things. While Shams begins to forge a life of paranoia and crime which he isn’t entirely sure of.
The book felt at times like a guidebook to everyday British Muslim lives. The conversations between Ishaq and his university peers at a rally on the campus, representing all sides of the argument, are particularly insightful. Ishaq debates with his own community, and then continues his discontent with an outburst at a lecture shortly after. He’s finding place in the arguments, and showing readers that the discussions are not as straightforward, or collective, as others initially may think.
The plot progresses through these unique voices, and each character is well considered. A personal favourite is Ayub, the troubled leader of the study circle who is trying to educate the younger characters and bury his past worries. He goes from being a minor character at the beginning, to developing into something much more pivotal to what the book is trying to say: how much of the past can you forget when trying to progress into the future?
The stand-out scene is the conversation between Ayub and the converted white Muslim, Adam. Through a few pages, we get raw emotion and uncover their hidden lives. We feel the desperation yet continued stoicism of Ayub, his need to remain grounded after everything he has seen – “We’re hated and it’s tough, but it’s a good forced-reminder. It compels us to remember our identity and think about the reality of our situation…forgetting is destruction, annihilation at our own hands or others. Always remember. Even if it is painful.” Adam sums up the changing tone of the country in just a sentence, saying others used to view him as “The eccentric English convert with a big beard. But with the climate now…nowadays…people I’ve known for years don’t look at me the same.”
This conversation takes place inside another major character in the novel: the tower block itself. The tiny details mentioned about the flats, the conversations between colourful neighbours, and the secrecy which we soon learn lurks behind every concrete corner; the environment is painted perfectly: “They listened as gusts of wind hit the building and were forced down the sides by impenetrable walls, creating bursts of air at the bottom. Gusts that plucked up plastic bags to dance in the wind, happily pirouetting and buoyed to new dizzy heights by the estate’s restive breath.”
It was also refreshing to read a different kind of ‘tower block’ portrayal, one that isn’t grey, bleak, crumbling and containing characters living solely in poverty. There are varying levels of privilege and representations which are all equally explored.
Khan has found his voice in using his experiences, shining a light on them in a creative, well thought out manner. While the plot isn’t the most fast-paced, the characters and their dialogue more than makes up for any potential lull. The novel offers an added complexity and history which only those voices within The Study Circle will be able to tell us.
https://www.subscript.it/review-study-circle-haroun-khan-dead-ink-books/
We follow the lives of Shams and Ishaq, two distant friends who are reunited during a time of escalating troubled relationships between their faith, and the rest of the country. With an upcoming EDL march and increased external interest in their Muslim study group, the story is set in the present day, raising questions of belonging, traditionalism and community.
The main characters of Ishaq and Shams are what drive the entire novel. Each is simply surviving in this chaotic community, fuelled by outside influences and a desire to belong yet remain unique. We journey through the novel as both young men begin to understand how and what it means to be a young person of faith in present-day London. Ishaq must decide whether or not to denounce the traditional life in his tower block and continue onto ‘better’ things. While Shams begins to forge a life of paranoia and crime which he isn’t entirely sure of.
The book felt at times like a guidebook to everyday British Muslim lives. The conversations between Ishaq and his university peers at a rally on the campus, representing all sides of the argument, are particularly insightful. Ishaq debates with his own community, and then continues his discontent with an outburst at a lecture shortly after. He’s finding place in the arguments, and showing readers that the discussions are not as straightforward, or collective, as others initially may think.
The plot progresses through these unique voices, and each character is well considered. A personal favourite is Ayub, the troubled leader of the study circle who is trying to educate the younger characters and bury his past worries. He goes from being a minor character at the beginning, to developing into something much more pivotal to what the book is trying to say: how much of the past can you forget when trying to progress into the future?
The stand-out scene is the conversation between Ayub and the converted white Muslim, Adam. Through a few pages, we get raw emotion and uncover their hidden lives. We feel the desperation yet continued stoicism of Ayub, his need to remain grounded after everything he has seen – “We’re hated and it’s tough, but it’s a good forced-reminder. It compels us to remember our identity and think about the reality of our situation…forgetting is destruction, annihilation at our own hands or others. Always remember. Even if it is painful.” Adam sums up the changing tone of the country in just a sentence, saying others used to view him as “The eccentric English convert with a big beard. But with the climate now…nowadays…people I’ve known for years don’t look at me the same.”
This conversation takes place inside another major character in the novel: the tower block itself. The tiny details mentioned about the flats, the conversations between colourful neighbours, and the secrecy which we soon learn lurks behind every concrete corner; the environment is painted perfectly: “They listened as gusts of wind hit the building and were forced down the sides by impenetrable walls, creating bursts of air at the bottom. Gusts that plucked up plastic bags to dance in the wind, happily pirouetting and buoyed to new dizzy heights by the estate’s restive breath.”
It was also refreshing to read a different kind of ‘tower block’ portrayal, one that isn’t grey, bleak, crumbling and containing characters living solely in poverty. There are varying levels of privilege and representations which are all equally explored.
Khan has found his voice in using his experiences, shining a light on them in a creative, well thought out manner. While the plot isn’t the most fast-paced, the characters and their dialogue more than makes up for any potential lull. The novel offers an added complexity and history which only those voices within The Study Circle will be able to tell us.
https://www.subscript.it/review-study-circle-haroun-khan-dead-ink-books/
tinywriter_'s review against another edition
5.0
It would be a lie to say that The Study Circle is an easy book — it isn’t — but it is an enthralling one. At its heart, it does what great writing does best. It tells an uncomfortable truth about the world we live in, and revels in the power of sharing our stories. Haroun Khan has a striking talent for making the reader empathise with each of his characters, and his debut is an arresting and absorbing portrait of the modern world, which many of us won’t have realised we needed to read.
chaotic_wholesome's review
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kingjason's review
5.0
Completely blown away by this book, never in a million years was I expecting something this good. The blurb says this book is "Groundbreaking", that is so true, it also has the potential to become a modern classic. It's handling of sensitive subject matter in a time when the world is on the edge of chaos, was sublime. The last 70 pages were read in a blur, I could feel this weight in the pit of my stomach as the book reaches it's inevitable conclusion.
Ishaq, Marwane and Shams are three very different lads who have been friends since they were little. Ishaq has the weight of the world on his shoulders, trying to find his place in a chaotic world, he finds it tough dealing with the prejudices a Muslim faces everyday. Shams is a troubled youth, not as bright as Ishaq and easily influenced by others, his recent life choices has set a series of events in motion. Marwane is a top lad, he is the rock that keeps the other two going, he's in the background a lot of the time but without him there then things would have fallen apart ages ago. The story follows these three with the backdrop of an impending EDF march.
In an world where Brexit exists for all the wrong reasons this becomes a very important book, the sort of book that should be read in schools, it gives the reader an insight into a misunderstood race/religion. I expect this is going to end up being the best book I've read this year and I highly recommend it, don't miss out on this reading experience.
Blog review is here> https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2018/11/03/the-study-circle-by-haroun-khan/
Ishaq, Marwane and Shams are three very different lads who have been friends since they were little. Ishaq has the weight of the world on his shoulders, trying to find his place in a chaotic world, he finds it tough dealing with the prejudices a Muslim faces everyday. Shams is a troubled youth, not as bright as Ishaq and easily influenced by others, his recent life choices has set a series of events in motion. Marwane is a top lad, he is the rock that keeps the other two going, he's in the background a lot of the time but without him there then things would have fallen apart ages ago. The story follows these three with the backdrop of an impending EDF march.
In an world where Brexit exists for all the wrong reasons this becomes a very important book, the sort of book that should be read in schools, it gives the reader an insight into a misunderstood race/religion. I expect this is going to end up being the best book I've read this year and I highly recommend it, don't miss out on this reading experience.
Blog review is here> https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2018/11/03/the-study-circle-by-haroun-khan/
jackielaw's review
4.0
“There was something fundamental at stake. Deep-seated ways of looking at the world that were at odds.”
The Study Circle, by Haroun Khan, is set in a South London housing estate of graffitied tower blocks where the simmering resentments of a second generation immigrant Muslim community are approaching boiling point. Harassed by the police on the streets and passed over for employment due to their names, the young men are urged by their parents and religious leaders to remain calm and obliging. The story is a powerful evocation of the day to day challenges which make this entreaty such a tough ask.
Ishaq, Marwane and Shams have been friends since school. The former two now attend a good university while Shams struggles to find a job. After several false starts he agrees to run deliveries for Mujahid, a local hard man and ex-convict trying to provide for his family any way he can. Sham’s new role brings him into contact with vocal supporters of the EDL. When the police and then a man claiming to work for MI5 question Shams he must make difficult choices.
For several years Ishaq has regularly attended a Study Circle. Here he and like minded peers from his community listen to a speaker, Ayub, as he reads from revered texts, and talks through the basic tenets of the Islamic faith. Ishaq wishes to be a good Muslim, striving to improve piety and character. His ideals are tested by the realities of blatant animosity that impacts his day to day experiences. Government, the media and those in positions of authority are increasingly strident in their prejudices and fear of followers of Islam.
Ishaq’s parents wish him to complete his degree, get a job, marry, have children and make a good life for himself by keeping his head down and acting compliant. Ishaq is questioning if he can live this way. On the estate are the likes of Mujahid who believes power and thereby rights and respect can only be earned through open displays of aggressive strength. The behaviour of the police and security services suggests they think along similar lines.
As a reader it took some time to engage with the tale being told. The incremental plot progression is cushioned by lengthy sections of dialogue. These conversations are the beating heart of a story whose aim appears to be to increase understanding of Muslim attitudes and resentments in Britain. There are misapprehensions on both sides. What is offered is nuances to counter the broad brush strokes more widely reported.
The young Muslim men observe the white people they regard as oppressors. They decry the drinking and gambling just as the white people they encounter decry their insistence on halal meat and proscribed attire. Ishaq recounts overhearing elderly neighbours share a moment of tenderness commenting that he had, up until this point, been unaware that white families were capable of being like this together – that they could ever act as his family did.
What comes to the fore is how little either side understands the other. The Islamic community preaches peace and patience yet there is so much anger boiling over at each provocation. The men on both sides resort to violence to protect what they regard as their innate rights. The white people demand assimilation while the Muslim community wish to be left to live according to their beliefs. Within each side are the few whose arguments are fuelled by hate.
The immigrant parents, who moved to Britain for a better way of life, berate their children for not making more of the opportunities thereby offered. The children berate their parents for not understanding how frustrated they feel at being treated as a threat by a white community granted the power to subjugate. Frustration, fear and aggression build to confrontations that, inevitably, spiral out of control.
Misunderstood prejudices explored include: traditional attire, including the head coverings worn by some Muslim women; FGM; the treatment of child abusers; arranged marriage. I would have liked more prominence given to female characters but this is a story of young men fighting for a place in the world they believe they deserve. Ishaq is torn between demands for loyalty to those he has grown up with, and the chance of a better way but only for himself.
This is a carefully crafted story on the reality of living as a Muslim man in working class Britain. The tinder of cultural and political persecution, enacted in the name of national security, builds dangerously in a community whose choices are limited by racial discrimination. The schisms created by interpretations of religious teachings add a volatile flame.
A story that works to provide a fair representation of both sides of a serious contemporary issue. This was an eye-opening, searingly relevant read.
The Study Circle, by Haroun Khan, is set in a South London housing estate of graffitied tower blocks where the simmering resentments of a second generation immigrant Muslim community are approaching boiling point. Harassed by the police on the streets and passed over for employment due to their names, the young men are urged by their parents and religious leaders to remain calm and obliging. The story is a powerful evocation of the day to day challenges which make this entreaty such a tough ask.
Ishaq, Marwane and Shams have been friends since school. The former two now attend a good university while Shams struggles to find a job. After several false starts he agrees to run deliveries for Mujahid, a local hard man and ex-convict trying to provide for his family any way he can. Sham’s new role brings him into contact with vocal supporters of the EDL. When the police and then a man claiming to work for MI5 question Shams he must make difficult choices.
For several years Ishaq has regularly attended a Study Circle. Here he and like minded peers from his community listen to a speaker, Ayub, as he reads from revered texts, and talks through the basic tenets of the Islamic faith. Ishaq wishes to be a good Muslim, striving to improve piety and character. His ideals are tested by the realities of blatant animosity that impacts his day to day experiences. Government, the media and those in positions of authority are increasingly strident in their prejudices and fear of followers of Islam.
Ishaq’s parents wish him to complete his degree, get a job, marry, have children and make a good life for himself by keeping his head down and acting compliant. Ishaq is questioning if he can live this way. On the estate are the likes of Mujahid who believes power and thereby rights and respect can only be earned through open displays of aggressive strength. The behaviour of the police and security services suggests they think along similar lines.
As a reader it took some time to engage with the tale being told. The incremental plot progression is cushioned by lengthy sections of dialogue. These conversations are the beating heart of a story whose aim appears to be to increase understanding of Muslim attitudes and resentments in Britain. There are misapprehensions on both sides. What is offered is nuances to counter the broad brush strokes more widely reported.
The young Muslim men observe the white people they regard as oppressors. They decry the drinking and gambling just as the white people they encounter decry their insistence on halal meat and proscribed attire. Ishaq recounts overhearing elderly neighbours share a moment of tenderness commenting that he had, up until this point, been unaware that white families were capable of being like this together – that they could ever act as his family did.
What comes to the fore is how little either side understands the other. The Islamic community preaches peace and patience yet there is so much anger boiling over at each provocation. The men on both sides resort to violence to protect what they regard as their innate rights. The white people demand assimilation while the Muslim community wish to be left to live according to their beliefs. Within each side are the few whose arguments are fuelled by hate.
The immigrant parents, who moved to Britain for a better way of life, berate their children for not making more of the opportunities thereby offered. The children berate their parents for not understanding how frustrated they feel at being treated as a threat by a white community granted the power to subjugate. Frustration, fear and aggression build to confrontations that, inevitably, spiral out of control.
Misunderstood prejudices explored include: traditional attire, including the head coverings worn by some Muslim women; FGM; the treatment of child abusers; arranged marriage. I would have liked more prominence given to female characters but this is a story of young men fighting for a place in the world they believe they deserve. Ishaq is torn between demands for loyalty to those he has grown up with, and the chance of a better way but only for himself.
This is a carefully crafted story on the reality of living as a Muslim man in working class Britain. The tinder of cultural and political persecution, enacted in the name of national security, builds dangerously in a community whose choices are limited by racial discrimination. The schisms created by interpretations of religious teachings add a volatile flame.
A story that works to provide a fair representation of both sides of a serious contemporary issue. This was an eye-opening, searingly relevant read.
More...