If you have ever wondered what it’s like to be a young girl growing up in an Asian community. If you have ever questioned arranged marriage and honor-based systems or ever tried to get your head around cultures that subjugate women. Then this book provides insight to all of the above.
Eleanor is a young girl growing up in a traditional Muslim family in England. Her mother has planned and agreed her marriage from birth and she will follow the predestined path of arranged marriage like that of her mother and grandmother. But Eleanor is questioning the world around her and from an early age is determined to change the course of her future. Subject to abuse and domestic violence, Eleanor comes into conflict with familial expectations and her own desires. When she seeks guidance from a mysterious woman, it uncovers greater secrets behind her parent’s past and her father’s plan to preserve his family honor.
Beautifully written, heart-wrenching, and emotional to the core, this book endeavors to go beneath the surface of cultural issues, traditional mindsets, and the life of women in these cultures. Taken from the author’s own journals, the characters, and plot lines are close to real ‘Written’ will leave readers emotionally gripped, and a book that will be hard to put down.
Targeted Age Group:: Adult
What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
D.A. Lee is a Bangladeshi-born British author, artist and poet, best known for her novel 'Written' published in 2019. Raised in a small town in Lancashire, England, Lee describes the cultural challenges of growing up in a Bengali household whilst navigating a western world.
Lee's novel, whilst fictional, draws on many of her own experiences of growing up in a Muslim family and explores the underworld of cultural expectations, arranged marriages, honour, abuse and domestic violence that often limit women's choices.
Lee first started writing as a form of self-healing through the challenges of home life. The word 'Written' had become a poignant theme throughout the book, a word often expressed culturally to describe the notion of determinism and predestination adopted by most traditional Muslim families as a common explanation for events in life. Lee takes us on a journey through her character Eleanor, a young girl caught between a web of family secrets and lies where she comes into conflict with these values.
Today, Lee is an advocate for women's freedom of choice and encourages women to speak out and seek help if they feel they are in danger.
How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
From a very early age I had always had a passion for writing, it’s a place where I can be alone with my thoughts, feelings, emotions and imagination. Writing helped me understand myself and others. I often describe my book as my friend. Through trauma it was the place that accepted and loved me, it was the place where I could be myself and let my creativity and imagination loose, but most of all it is a place that inspired me to improve myself and help others.
When I started writing my book, it was these three elements that built the foundation of my writing. I aim to always write from a loving, creative and inspirational place. At the heart of my writing is to help women find the courage to love themselves and be themselves. My characters are drawn from my experiences and encounters growing up in Asian communities.I hope that you enjoy reading my books and that they find a place in your heart.
Book Sample
"…I would often sit staring emptily at the hills, the bare, lifeless trees and the grey clouds casting shadows over the houses. I would watch the birds flying over, following them out as far as I could see. " One day I will fly over that hill like you," I would say to them. …One day I did. "
Links to Purchase Print Books
Buy Written: A Story of Love, Secrets, Betrayal and Honour Print Edition at Amazon
Links to Purchase eBooks – Click links for book samples and reviews
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