50 pages • 1 hour read
S. K. AliLove From A to Z
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2018A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Authorial Context: S. K. Ali
S. K. Ali is an Indian Canadian author known for her young adult novels. Beginning with her 2017 debut novel Saints and Misfits, Ali’s works of young adult fiction explore the complexities of coming of age as a Muslim individual. Saints and Misfits was named one of the year’s best teen novels by Entertainment Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and the New York Public Library. Ali explores similar themes of identity and romance in her sophomore novel, Love From A to Z. The novel also translates Ali’s personal experiences to the realm of fiction. As she says in her Author’s Note at the end of the source text, the Islamophobia that Zayneb faces in the novel is based on the “litany of hateful incidents” Ali herself has experienced and borne witness to (337). Therefore, Ali’s own Muslim identity informs her writing, granting her the empathy to explore complex themes.
Ali’s young adult novels focus on positively representing the Muslim community but aren’t specifically tailored to Muslim audiences. Rather, Ali says in her Author’s Note that she “write[s] for all of you—those who know what it feels like and those who don’t, but want to” (338). Her diverse cast of characters and array of complex conflicts make her stories accessible to a range of readers. Her other novels, Love from Mecca to Medina, Misfit in Love, and Once Upon an Eid, have had a similarly wide appeal and success on the literary market.
Geographical Context: Doha, Qatar
The novel’s primary setting in Doha, Qatar, inspires many of the text’s primary conflicts, themes, and atmospheres. Doha is located on Qatar’s eastern coast along the Persian Gulf, over 7,000 miles from protagonist Zayneb Malik’s home in Indiana. As Qatar’s capital, Doha is the country’s political and economic center, and it has grown rapidly over the past few decades. Despite its modern buildings and industries, the city retains its traditional heritage, like the cultural village Zayneb visits with her aunt and the Chens. When Zayneb moves through Doha at night, she notes its blend of tradition and modernity, observing how “the old and the new and the future [join] together in a small explosion” (45).
Qatar is an Islamic state, and over 60% of Doha’s residents are estimated to be Muslim (Office of International Religious Freedom. “2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Qatar.” U.S. Department of State). Used to being in the minority for her Muslim identity, Zayneb feels “giddy and happy and […] free” to be around other people like her who don’t judge her for the way she looks, dresses, and expresses herself (46). However, many people living in Doha aren’t Muslim, like Auntie Nandy.
In addition to religious diversity, Doha is a multicultural city; almost 90% of those living in Qatar are noncitizens (Office of International Religious Freedom). The country’s rapid urban development relies in part on large populations of migrant laborers from South Asian countries, drawing attention to labor inequities (Harvard Divinity School. “Qatar.” Religion and Public Life). Other expatriates come from around the world to work in the gas and oil industries, finance, and many other sectors. Their children often attend international schools, like the one Auntie Nandy teaches at and Adam attended.
