Michael Mohammed Ahmad – författare

FINALIST FOR THE MILES FRANKLIN LITERARY AWARDS 2019WINNER OF THE NSW PREMIERS LITERARY AWARDS MULTICULTURAL NSW AWARD 2019''Bani Adam thinks he''s better than us!'' they say over and over until finally I shout back, ''Shut up, I have something to say!''They all go quiet and wait for me to explain myself, redeem myself, pull my shirt out, rejoin the pack. I hold their anticipation for three seconds, and then, while they''re all ablaze, I say out loud, ''I do think I''m better.''As far as Bani Adam is concerned Punchbowl Boys is the arse end of the earth. Though he''s a Leb and they control the school, Bani feels at odds with the other students, who just don''t seem to care. He is a romantic in a sea of hypermasculinity. Bani must come to terms with his place in this hostile, hopeless world, while dreaming of so much more.Praise for The Lebs:''an open-eyed and highly charismatic novel broiling with fight, tenderness and ambition.'' - Big Issue''The Lebs is a strong and resonant novel that deserves to be widely read.'' - Weekend Australian''The author never lets his superb command of idiom or his eye for the absurd overwhelm a deeply felt exploration of the hurt and damage that can come from encounters with the Australian Other. No one who reads The Lebs deserves to come out unscathed.'' - The Saturday Paper ''Ahmad''s piercing storytelling cuts away at the lace and trimmings of race relations in Australia today.'' - The Lifted Brow

''I only ever asked you for one thing,'' my father said, a quiver in his voice. ''Just this one thing.'' It was as though I had smashed the Ten Commandments.''Oh father,'' I cried, grovelling at his ankles while my mother and siblings looked on. ''The one thing you asked of me - is everything.''Bani Adam has known all his life what was expected of him. To marry the right kind of girl. To make the House of Adam proud.But Bani wanted more than this - he wanted to make his own choices. Being the first in his Australian Muslim family to go to university, he could see a different way.Years later, Bani will write his story to his son, Kahlil. Telling him of the choices that were made on Bani''s behalf and those that he made for himself. Of the hurt he caused and the heartache he carries. Of the mistakes he made and the lessons he learned.In this moving and timely novel, Michael Mohammed Ahmad balances the complexities of modern love with the demands of family, tradition and faith. The Other Half of You is the powerful, insightful and unforgettable new novel from the Miles Franklin shortlisted author of The Lebs.PRAISE FOR THE LEBSWINNER NSW Premier''s Literary Awards Multicultural NSW Award 2019SHORTLISTED Miles Franklin Literary Award 2019''an open-eyed and highly charismatic novel broiling with fight, tenderness and ambition'' Big Issue''wonderfully vivid and compelling . . . utterly authentic'' Books+Publishing