Laila Lalami

Columnist

LailaLalami

Laila Lalami is the author of Conditional Citizens: On Belonging in America. She is a professor of creative writing at the University of California, Riverside.

Against Easy Stories

Against Easy Stories Against Easy Stories

Facile explanations for the massacre must be resisted.

Jan 14, 2015 / Laila Lalami

Why We Must Resist Simple Explanations of the ‘Charlie Hebdo’ Massacre

Why We Must Resist Simple Explanations of the ‘Charlie Hebdo’ Massacre Why We Must Resist Simple Explanations of the ‘Charlie Hebdo’ Massacre

Tidy stories reducing the atrocity to a clash of civilizations or a problem with integration are neither enlightening nor satisfying.

Jan 10, 2015 / Laila Lalami

Imagine: On J.M Coetzee

Imagine: On J.M Coetzee Imagine: On J.M Coetzee

The Childhood of Jesus explores the fictitious dimensions of a just and compassionate world.

Sep 24, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Laila Lalami

Among the Blasphemers: On Salman Rushdie

Among the Blasphemers: On Salman Rushdie Among the Blasphemers: On Salman Rushdie

Joseph Anton is a tale of betrayals: of free speech, communities, religion, marriages, personal convictions, friends.

Jan 16, 2013 / Books & the Arts / Laila Lalami

Islamophobia and Its Discontents

Islamophobia and Its Discontents Islamophobia and Its Discontents

Assailed by the right as a fiction, anti-Muslim bias is all too real for those who live with it.

Jun 14, 2012 / Feature / Laila Lalami

In Annawadi: On Katherine Boo

In Annawadi: On Katherine Boo In Annawadi: On Katherine Boo

Behind the Beautiful Forevers is a superb, empathic account of life in a Mumbai undercity.

Apr 17, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Laila Lalami

Everything Except Me: On Percival Everett Everything Except Me: On Percival Everett

In Assumption a murder mystery becomes a lesson in how much we do not know.

Jan 18, 2012 / Books & the Arts / Laila Lalami

The Moroccan ‘Exception’ The Moroccan ‘Exception’

The king says his realm is a beacon of liberalism, but the people demand bread, and roses too. 

Aug 24, 2011 / Feature / Laila Lalami

Frankfurt Shootings: The Making of a Terrorist? Frankfurt Shootings: The Making of a Terrorist?

What the debate over terrorists seems to miss is the personal dimension: personal failures and personal grievances of the lone gunmen.

Mar 3, 2011 / Laila Lalami

Arab Uprisings and American Intervention Arab Uprisings and American Intervention

The young people protesting in Arab capitals right now want a meaningful break with the status quo and, in many ways, that means a break from American support.

Mar 2, 2011 / Laila Lalami

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