Abstract
In his recent novel, Knots (2007), the Somali author Nuruddin Farah situates the story in contemporary Mogadishu, a city run by warlords and drug barons in an increasingly assertive Islamic cultural milieu. The female protagonist, Cambara, returns from exile and through her ability to move around in the city, finds possibilities of connecting with other women activists to work toward reconciliation and peace. A tale of hope and female strength, the novel depicts the emergence of new kinds of urban spaces in the global south where, despite frictions, violence, and conflict, varied actors—male and female—create opportunities to coexist and prosper.
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© 2008 Martina Rieker and Kamran Asdar Ali
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Ali, K.A., Rieker, M. (2008). Introduction. In: Rieker, M., Ali, K.A. (eds) Gendering Urban Space in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230612471_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230612471_1
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