The Half Mother: A Novel

Summary of the Book Kashmir has always been a victim of war, and civilians have been paying the price for a war that is not even theirs. And in the 1990s, Kashmir's long war had already started to claim lives. A lot of them went missing and many others lost homes. The Half Mother is a story set in this backdrop. Two of those who go missing are Haleema's father, Ghulam Rasool Joo, and her teenaged son Imran, who is taken away by the authorities. The story brings out the delicate nuances of a deserted woman’s sufferings and torments. Haleema - a daughter and a mother, a 'half mother' who is now an orphan. She is emotionally wrecked, with the uncertainty of her son’s existence distressing her by the minute. While one mother fights and yearns for answers and sets out to find her son in torture camps, jails and morgues, Kashmir is burning in a war that shows no signs of ending any sooner. The Half Mother marks the beginning of a brave new voice from the troubled land of Kashmir, who has brought to us a heart-wrenching, profoundly haunting and lyrical story, reflecting the inhuman effects of war. About Shahnaz Bashir Shahnaz Bashir was born and brought up in Kashmir. He is associated with the Central University of Kashmir where he teaches Creative Journalism and Narrative and Literary Reportage. He is also the coordinator of the post-graduate media studies programme there. His essay, A Crackdown in Natipora, was a part of the anthology, Of Occupation and Resistance - Writings from Kashmir (Tranquebar, 2013). Shahnaz Bashir is the recipient of the university gold medal and the acclaimed Shameem Ahmad Shameem Memorial Kashmir Times Award in the year 2007.