Sisters in Arms

‘[W]ill appeal to fans of Elena Ferrante, Zadie Smith, and Kamila Shamsie … An immersive and thought-provoking read with a strong plot and relatable characters, and which explores urgent contemporary questions around racism and sexism in society.’

* New Books in German *

‘This worthy novel about immigration and racism in contemporary Germany is tough going. Bazyar is astute in her depiction of a contemporary climate that explicitly “others” migrants.’

-- Claire Allfree * Daily Mail *

‘Sends us on a journey of exploration, right into the abyss of German identity politics — a magnificent book.’

* Süddeutsche Zeitung *

‘A smart, important novel that gives you a caress on the cheek and a punch in the jaw as you read it. The amazing thing is that in the end you want more of both.’

-- Pierre Jarawan author of Song for the Missing

‘Shida Bazyar tells us — uncompromisingly, powerfully, and accusingly — what it means to have one’s origins constantly questioned.’

-- Judges’ comments for The German Book Prize

‘It tackles the pressing issues of our time, and yet it is timeless. This is a story of friendship, marginalisation and society's blindness to its own deep-seated problems … A triumph. It has all the makings of great literature, literature that will endure … Sisters in Arms demonstrates that all the talk about the lack of social relevance of art and literature is a fatal mistake.’

-- Gerrit Wustmann * Qantara *

‘An explosive feminist and anti-racist novel about the importance of friendship … Sisters ini Arms is a provocative, uncompromising, and moving novel about the extraordinary alliance between three young women and the only thing that makes a self-determined life possible in a society that doesn't tolerate otherness: unconditional friendship.’

* Female *

‘Humane, relatable, and self-aware, Sisters in Arms is an involving novel that indicts polite neoliberalism and open racism alike for the ways in which people in contemporary societies are forced apart.’

* Foreword Reviews *

‘Sisters in Arms is a gripping and immersive novel which will linger in your mind long after you finish it.’

* Goethe-Institut Glasg