Makings of a Waterslams (eBook)

"e;Khamr: The Makings of a Waterslams is a true story that maps theauthor's experience of living with an alcoholic father and the directconflict of having to perform a Muslim life that taught him that nearlyeverything he called home was forbidden.A detailed account from his childhood to early adulthood, Jamil F. Khanlays bare the experience of living in a so-called middle-class Colouredhome in a neighbourhood called Bernadino Heights in Kraaifontein, asuburb to the north of Cape Town. His memories are overwhelmed bythe constant discord that was created by the chaos and dysfunction ofhis alcoholic home and a co-dependent relationship with his mother,while trying to manage the daily routine of his parents' keeping upappearances and him maintaining scholastic excellence.Khan's memories are clear and detailed, which in turn is complementedby his scholarly thinking and analysis of those memories. Heinterrogates the intersections of Islam, Colouredness and thehypocrisy of respectability as well as the effect perceived class statushas on these social realities in simple yet incisive language, giving thereader more than just a memoir of pain and suffering.Khan says about his debut book: 'This is not a story for theromanticisation of pain and perseverance, although it tells ofovercoming many difficulties. It is a critique of secret violence infaith communities and families, and the hypocrisy that has damagedso many people still looking for a place and way to voice theirtrauma. This is a critique of the value placed on ritual and cultureat the expense of human life and well-being, and the far-reachingconsequences of systems of oppression dressed up as tradition.'"e;