Book Review: ‘On the Brink of Belief’ by Kazim Ali

Book Title: On the Brink of Belief: Queer Writing from South Asia
Author: Kazim Ali
Publisher: Penguin India
Number of Pages: 264
ISBN: 978-0143475002
Date Published: Jun. 28, 2025
Price: INR 365

Book Review

Kazim Ali’s “On the Brink of Belief” is a stirring, genre-defying anthology that gathers the voices of 24 queer writers from across South Asia and its diaspora. At its heart lies a rich exploration of the entangled relationship between queerness and faith—subjects often kept apart or placed in opposition. Here, belief becomes a dynamic space, shaped not only by religion but also by memory, magic, love, and trauma. Through poetry, flash fiction, memoir, and fragmentary forms, this collection doesn’t just speak—it breathes, pulses, and resists.

What makes the anthology exceptional is its commitment to multiplicity. From the spectral presence of djinns and the haunting shadows of shaitans to whispered kitchen conversations and heartfelt emails, these stories occupy many registers. Each piece refuses to be reduced to a single truth. Some voices come cloaked in myth, others raw with confessional urgency, yet all of them contribute to a textured, kaleidoscopic vision of queer South Asian life. The diversity of styles and perspectives turns the book into a constellation—where each story is its own star, yet still part of a shared sky.

This literary achievement is also a product of collaborative community-building. Born from The Queer Writers’ Room, an initiative by The Queer Muslim Project in collaboration with the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program, the anthology offers space for emerging and marginalized writers. Under Ali’s sensitive curation, these voices are not polished into neat narratives for mainstream comfort—they are allowed to be defiant, fragmented, intimate, and real. It’s a collection that doesn’t ask for permission. It simply exists, fully and unapologetically.

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Ultimately, “On the Brink of Belief” is both sanctuary and provocation. It asks readers to sit with discomfort, contradiction, and beauty all at once. It breaks silences, challenges borders—be they national, spiritual, or linguistic—and offers a literary refuge to those seeking belonging beyond binaries. For anyone interested in the evolving landscape of queer literature, particularly within the South Asian context, this book isn’t just recommended—it’s necessary.

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