Him, Me, Muhammad Ali

217 Pages·2016·2.42 MB·English

by  Jarrar Randa

5.5 × 8.5 SPINE: 0.54 FLAPS: 0
Award-winning novelist Randa Jarrar’s story collection
moves seamlessly between realism and fable, history
and the present, capturing the lives of Muslim women
and men across myriad geographies and circumstances.
With acerbic wit, deep tenderness, and boundless
imagination, Jarrar brings to life a memorable cast of
characters, many of them “accidental transients”—a
term for migratory birds who have gone astray—
seeking their circuitous routes back home. Fierce
and feeling, Him, Me, Muhammad Ali is a testament to
survival in the face of love, loss, and displacement.
“[These stories] brilliantly demonstrate Jarrar’s huge
talent, compassion, and range. Him, Me, Muhammad Ali
astonishes from start to finish.”
—SAM LIPSYTE
“A searing collection of short stories about loving, lust-
ing, losing, and surviving. Randa Jarrar is one of the
finest writers of her generation.”
—LAILA LALAMI
“The voices in Him, Me, Muhammad Ali are powerful indi-
vidually and overwhelming as a chorus. This wonderful
work isn’t just a collection; it’s a world.”
—MAT JOHNSON
“These vibrant, funny, earthy, and above all, yearning sto-
ries are a revelation. . . . Like a female, Arab American
Junot Díaz!”
—PETER HO DAVIES
PRAISE FOR A MAP OF HOME:
“Punchy and vibrant.”
—PEOPLE
“Big brain, big wit, and big personality.”
—ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
“Moving—and often quite funny.”
—CHICAGO TRIBUNE
$15.95 FICTION/LITERATURE
SARABANDE BOOKS

HIM, ME,
MUHAMMAD
ALI
STORIES
RANDA JARRAR
SARABANDE BOOKS LOUISVILLE, KY
Copyright © 2016 Randa Jarrar
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Jarrar, Randa.
Title: Him, me, Muhammad Ali / Randa Jarrar.
Description: Louisville, KY : Sarabande Books, 2016.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016014116 | ISBN 9781941411315 (softcover)
Subjects: | BISAC: FICTION / Short Stories (single author). | FAMILY &
RELATIONSHIPS / Death, Grief, Bereavement. | SOCIAL SCIENCE / Islamic
Studies. | SOCIAL SCIENCE / Folklore & Mythology.
Classification: LCC PS3610.A76 A6 2016 | DDC 813/.6--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016014116
Cover design and interior by Kristen Radtke.
Manufactured in Canada.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Sarabande Books is a nonprofit literary organization.
This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Kentucky Arts
Council, the state arts agency, supports Sarabande Books with state tax dollars and federal funding from the
National Endowment for the Arts.
For my son, Angelo

CONTENTS
1
The Lunatics’ Eclipse 3
Building Girls 15
Lost in Freakin’ Yonkers 35
How Can I Be of Use to You? 53
2
A Sailor 69
Grace 73
Testimony of Malik, Prisoner #287690 87
Accidental Transients 97
Asmahan 119
3
Him, Me, Muhammad Ali 139
The Story of My Building 163
A Frame for the Sky 175
The Life, Loves, and Adventures of Zelwa the Halfie 189
Acknowledgments

1