New Books In Literature

Bina Shah speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her short story “Weeds and Flowers,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common magazine. In this conversation, Shah talks about how the people she observes and encounters in her life in Karachi, Pakistan, inspire her work in fiction. She also discusses her 2018 feminist dystopian novel Before She Sleeps, and the sequel she’s working on now, in addition to her work as a journalist. Bina Shah is a Karachi-based author of five novels and two collections of short stories, including the feminist dystopia Before She Sleeps, published in 2018. Her work has appeared in Granta, The New York Times, and Pakistan’s biggest English-language newspaper, Dawn, as well as other international newspapers and journals. Read “Weeds and Flowers” by Bina Shah at thecommononline.org/weeds-and-flowers. Learn more about Bina Shah and her work at thefeministani.wordpress.com, and find her novel Before She Sleeps here. Follow Bina Shah on Twitter at twitter.com/BinaShah. The Common i