From age five, Sufiya Abdur-Rahman, the daughter of two Black Power鈥揺ra converts to Islam, feels drawn to the faith even as her father, a devoted Muslim, introduces her to and, at the same time, distances her from it. Abdur-Rahman鈥檚 father and mother abandoned their Harlem mosque before she was born and divorced when she was twelve. Forced apart from her father鈥攈er portal into Islam鈥攕he yearns to reconnect with the religion and, through it, reconnect with him.
In Heir to the Crescent Moon, Abdur-Rahman鈥檚 longing to comprehend her father鈥檚 complicated relationship with Islam leads her first to recount her own history, and then delves into her father鈥檚 past. She journeys from the Christian righteousness of Adam Clayton Powell Jr.鈥檚 1950s Harlem, through the Malcolm X鈥搃nspired college activism of the late 1960s, to the unfulfilled potential of the early 1970s Black American Muslim movement. Told at times with lighthearted humor or heartbreaking candor, Abdur-Rahman鈥檚 story of adolescent Arabic lessons, fasting, and Muslim mosque, funeral, and Eid services speaks to the challenges of bridging generational and cultural divides and what it takes to maintain family amidst personal and societal upheaval. She weaves a vital tale about a family: Black, Muslim, and distinctly American.
鈥淎bdur-Rahman writes with eloquence, emotion, and restraint, evoking a child鈥檚 curiosity and a young woman鈥檚 frustration. The smooth narrative weaves her childhood and adolescence with her father鈥檚 political awakening and eventual conversion to Islam. The connections and diversions between his evolution and hers are distinct, allowing for understanding of the personal joys and disappointments to be found when one is reconciling the humanity of a parent with their own identity. . . . Heir to the Crescent Moon is an expressive memoir about faith, family, and identity.鈥濃Foreword Reviews
鈥淚t鈥檚 a marvel the way Abdur-Rahman blends cultural criticisms and reflections on media into a memoir about the stories we inherit and choose to tell. With quick prose and stunning insight, she skillfully widens intimate family portraits into histories of the American Civil Rights movement. She captures the challenges and triumphs of keeping faith in an ideology, keeping faith in our loved ones. Heir to the Crescent Moon is a deeply personal account of learning to navigate the limitless possibilities of being Black and Muslim and a woman.鈥濃擠onald Edem Quist, author, Harbors
鈥淚n swift, stunning passages, Abdur-Rahman鈥檚 brilliant memoir, Heir to the Crescent Moon, fearlessly and honestly recounts what it is to inherit religion, to embody wisdom, to protect love, and to assume the immeasurable role of daughter.鈥濃擲usan Steinberg, judge, 海角乱伦社区Prize for Literary Nonfiction
鈥淎bdur-Rahman鈥檚 debut memoir is like her Abi鈥檚 dhikr beads鈥攅ach chapter is an opportunity to ponder and marvel at all she has to teach us in poignant, gorgeous prose that will make you smile and break your heart, often at once.鈥濃擲usan Muaddi Darraj, author, A Curious Land: Stories from Home
