Book Review: Hijab Butch Blues
Muslim author maintains faith despite persecuted sexuality
For the better part of history, most major religions of the world have not accepted the queer identity and have either fully dismissed or openly rallied against those in the LGBTQIA+ community. In the new memoir Hijab Butch Blues, Muslim author Lamya H. — who writes under a pseudonym and omits certain details to protect her identity — recounts how she's been able to reconcile her faith with her identity as a queer woman.
From a young age, Lamya has felt out of place: moving to what she only calls "an Arab country" from her native home she finds herself among those different from her, both in looks and in feeling. At 14, when she realizes she has unfamiliar feelings for a female teacher, further alienating her from her peers.
Lamya finds comfort in her faith, though, and takes many of her monumental experiences — both struggles and successes — and finds comparisons between them and those of the prophets in the Quran. From questioning why she feels the way she does to understanding that you must pick your battles, Lamya finds deeper meaning in these passages as they apply to her life.
Thanks to this, the memoir holds more power and surprise than one may initially think. At face value, it seems like it would be the struggle to come into one's own identity as a queer woman while also maintaining a faith that seems to oppose — if not completely vilify — that identity, but this story is so much more. While that conflict is certainly part of the story, it is not the overarching theme.
Hijab Butch Blues is intimate, touching, and most importantly thought-provoking, allowing readers to understand that religion and queer identity are not two opposites on a spectrum, but instead can be intricately and beautifully intertwined.
The Dial Press // 304 pages // Memoir, LGBTQ+
