Kamila Shamsie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kamila Shamsie
FRSL
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Shamsie at the 2016 Hay Festival
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| Native name |
کاملہ شمسی
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| Born | 13 August 1973 Karachi, Pakistan |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Nationality | Pakistani British |
| Education | Karachi Grammar School |
| Alma mater | Hamilton College University of Massachusetts Amherst |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Notable works | Burnt Shadows (2009) Home Fire (2017) |
| Notable awards | Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for fiction; Women's Prize for Fiction |
| Relatives | Muneeza Shamsie (mother) Attia Hosain (great-aunt) |
Kamila Shamsie is a famous writer and novelist from Pakistan and Britain. She was born on August 13, 1973. She is well-known for her award-winning novel Home Fire, which came out in 2017.
Granta magazine, a well-known literary publication, named her one of the 20 best young British writers. People often say she is a novelist to watch out for. Kamila Shamsie also writes for popular newspapers and magazines like The Guardian. She also shares her thoughts on the radio.
Contents
Early Life and School
Kamila Shamsie grew up in a well-known family in Karachi, Pakistan. Her family included many smart people who loved books and writing. Her mother, Muneeza Shamsie, is a journalist and editor. Her great-aunt, Attia Hosain, was also a writer. Her grandmother, Jahanara Habibullah, wrote memoirs about her life. Kamila's father is English.
Kamila went to Karachi Grammar School in Pakistan. Later, she went to the United States as a student. She studied creative writing at Hamilton College. She also earned a special degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. There, she was inspired by the poet Agha Shahid Ali.
Her Writing Career
Kamila Shamsie wrote her first novel, In the City by the Sea, while she was still in college. It was published in 1998 when she was 25 years old. This book was nominated for the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize in the UK. In 1999, she won the Prime Minister's Award for Literature in Pakistan.
Her second novel, Salt and Saffron, came out in 2000. After that, she was chosen as one of "Orange's 21 Writers of the 21st Century." Her third novel, Kartography (2002), was highly praised by critics. It was also nominated for the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize. Reviewers said her writing style was unique and playful.
Both Kartography and her next novel, Broken Verses (2005), won the Patras Bokhari Award in Pakistan.
Award-Winning Novels
Kamila Shamsie's fifth novel, Burnt Shadows (2009), was nominated for the Orange Prize for Fiction. It also won an Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for fiction. This book showed how shared histories can affect people's lives. It hinted at bigger sad events through the losses of individuals.
Her novel A God in Every Stone (2014) was nominated for the 2015 Walter Scott Prize. It was also nominated for the Baileys Women's Prize For Fiction.
Shamsie's seventh novel, Home Fire, was published in 2017. The BBC called it a "powerful story of the complexities of love, family and state in wartime." This book was nominated for the 2017 Booker Prize. It was also nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award. In 2018, Home Fire won the important Women's Prize for Fiction.
Other Works and Activities
Kamila Shamsie has also written a non-fiction book called Offence: The Muslim Case (2009). In 2009, she wrote a short story called "The Desert Torso" for Oxfam. This story was part of a project where many authors wrote stories for charity.
She has attended many literary events, like the Jaipur Literature Festival in 2011. There, she talked about her unique writing style. She also took part in a project called Sixty-Six Books, where she wrote a piece based on a book from the King James Bible.
In 2011, Kamila Shamsie became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. This is a special honor for writers. In 2013, she was again named on the Granta list of 20 best young British writers.
She often takes part in international events, like the Cleveland Humanities Festival. In 2017, she became a Professor of Creative Writing at the Manchester Centre for New Writing. She helps students learn how to write their own stories.
In 2018, she gave a special talk called the Orwell Lecture. She spoke about citizenship and how rights can sometimes become privileges.
Her Personal Life
Kamila Shamsie considers herself a Muslim. She moved to London in 2007. Now, she is a citizen of both the UK and Pakistan.
In 2012, she joined the Authors XI cricket team. Even though she had never played cricket before, she decided to try it. She wrote a chapter called "The Women's XI" for a book about the team's first season.
Awards and Special Mentions
Kamila Shamsie has received many awards and special recognitions for her writing.
Recognition
- 1999: Prime Minister's Award for Literature in Pakistan, for In the City by the Sea
- 2002: Patras Bokhari Award from the Academy of Letters in Pakistan
- 2005: Patras Bokhari Award, for Broken Verses
- 2013: Recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women.
- 2013: Named on Granta Best of Young British Novelists
- 2019: Nelly Sachs Prize, in honour of her literary work (this award was later withdrawn).
Literary Awards
- 2010: Won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Burnt Shadows.
- 2018: Won the Women's Prize for Fiction for Home Fire.
Books She Has Written
- In the City by the Sea (1998)
- Salt and Saffron (2000)
- Kartography (2002)
- Broken Verses (2005)
- Offence: The Muslim Case (2009)
- Burnt Shadows (2009)
- A God in Every Stone (2014)
- Home Fire (2017)
- Duckling: A Fairy Tale Revolution (2020)
- Best of Friends (2022)
See also
In Spanish: Kamila Shamsie para niños
