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Leila Aboulela

Goodreads Author

Born

in Cairo, Egypt

Genre

Literature & Fiction

Member Since

January 2011

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Leila Aboulela grew up in Khartoum, Sudan where she attended the Khartoum American School and Sister School. She graduated from Khartoum University in 1985 with a degree in Economics and was awarded her Masters degree in statistics from the London School of Economics. She lived for many years in Aberdeen where she wrote most of her works while looking after her family; she currently lives and lectures in Abu Dhabi.

She was awarded the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2000 for her short story The Museum and her novel The Translator was nominated for the Orange Prize in 2002, and was chosen as a Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times in 2006.

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Average rating: 3.67 · 14,587 ratings · 2,319 reviews · 36 distinct works • Similar authors

	Minaret 3.59 avg rating — 3,135 ratings — published 2005 — 24 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Translator 3.57 avg rating — 2,361 ratings — 34 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lyrics Alley 3.79 avg rating — 1,556 ratings — published 2010 — 28 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	River Spirit 3.94 avg rating — 1,425 ratings — published 2023 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Kindness of Enemies 3.79 avg rating — 1,171 ratings — published 2015 — 16 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bird Summons 3.26 avg rating — 1,285 ratings — published 2019 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Elsewhere, Home 3.69 avg rating — 931 ratings — published 2018 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Coloured Lights 3.83 avg rating — 167 ratings — published 2005 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Museum 3.57 avg rating — 168 ratings — published 2002 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A New Year 3.81 avg rating — 113 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Bird Summons

by Leila Aboulela (Goodreads Author)

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Jan 12, 2020 02:28AM

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Oct 05, 2025 12:50PM · like
Leila and 2 other people liked David's review of River Spirit: "This is an excellent novel, interesting and fun to read, but I'd like to recommend other reading about the same topic which is available free of charge in several places on the internet. I think that this reading will enrich understanding of River Sp" Read more of this review »
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Apr 20, 2025 05:57PM · 3 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of A Mouth Full of Salt by Reem Gaafar. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — A Mouth Full of Salt by Reem Gaafar <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Quotes by Leila Aboulela (?)

“All through life there were distinctions - toilets for men, toilets for women; clothes for men, clothes for women - then, at the end, the graves are identical.”
― Leila Aboulela, Minaret

tags: death, gender-equality, life

68 likes

“The Mercy of Allah is an Ocean, Our sins are a lump of clay clenched between the beak of a pigeon. The pigeon is perched on the branch of a tree at the edge of that ocean.It only has to open it's beak”
― Leila Aboulela, Minaret

tags: allah, bird, clay, leila, lyrics-alley, mercy, minaret, the-translater

31 likes

“Allah tests our patience and our fortitude. He tests out strength of faith. be patient and there will endless rewards for you, insha'Allah" - Utaz Badr”
― Leila Aboulela, Lyrics Alley

tags: faith, islam, spiritual

28 likes

See all Leila Aboulela's quotes »

Polls

What should be our April 'Read Around the World' Group Read? (Africa)

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (Ghana)

17 votes 23.3%

The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing (South Africa)

10 votes 13.7%

Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta (Nigeria)

9 votes 12.3%

City of Saints & Thieves by Natalie C. Anderson (Kenya)

8 votes 11.0%

Dreams of Trespass: Tales of a Harem Girlhood by Fatema Mernissi (Morocco)

7 votes 9.6%

October by Zoë Wicomb (South Africa)

5 votes 6.8%

Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste (Ethiopia)

4 votes 5.5%

Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin (Rwanda)

4 votes 5.5%

Kisses from Katie: A Story of Relentless Love and Redemption by Katie J. Davis (Uganda)

3 votes 4.1%

Scarlet Song by Mariama Bâ (Senegal)

3 votes 4.1%

The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna (Sierra Leone)

2 votes 2.7%

Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela (Sudan)

1 vote 1.4%

73 total votes

2 comments

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Literary Fiction ...: "The Memory of Love" Makes Orange Prize Longlist	7	45	May 22, 2011 09:25AM
The Seasonal Read...: Spring Challenge 2011 Completed Tasks (DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS)	2867	1117	May 31, 2011 09:01PM
Middle East/North...: 2011 Stop (2) Nile valley and the Horn of Africa	80	122	Jun 24, 2011 01:52PM
Historical Fictio...: May 2012 Challenge- Report Points Here	48	157	Jun 01, 2012 04:14AM
Aussie Readers: Autumn Reading Challenge - 1/3/13 - 31/5/13	659	245	Jun 01, 2013 07:19PM
Womankind Worldwi...: Recommendations for travel by book	64	387	Jun 19, 2013 06:54AM
The Seasonal Read...: Completed Tasks (Do Not Delete Posts)	2519	654	Aug 01, 2014 02:12PM
Middle East/North...: Shadows of the Pomegranate Tree by Tariq Ali	13	59	Nov 09, 2015 05:17PM

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Leila’s Quotes

“The sweetest things in life were not necessarily what one strove for and grabbed. Instead, many many times the All-Merciful, the All-Generous would give His servants without being petitioned, without waiting to be asked.”
― Leila Aboulela, Lyrics Alley

2 likes

“The blow, inevitable in itself, comes straight from the source without any intermediaries.”
― Leila Aboulela, Lyrics Alley

3 likes

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Leila Aboulela’s Followers (923)

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Leila Aboulela

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