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Maryam Azam Maryam Azam i(8953952 works by)
Gender: Female
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BiographyHistory

Raised in Blacktown for her teenage years, Maryam Azam completed a Bachelor of Arts (Deans Scholars) from the University of Western Sydney, and graduated with Honours in Creative Writing in 2014. She also holds a diploma in the Islamic Sciences. In 2015, she received a WestWords Emerging Writers’ Fellowship. A high-school teacher in Kellyville, she published her first poetry collection, The Hijab Files, in 2018.

Most Referenced Works

Personal Awards

2020 recipient Australia Council Grants, Awards and Fellowships Literature Arts Projects for Individuals and Groups     $32,038 
2019 shortlisted Red Room Poetry Fellowship

Awards for Works

y separately published work icon The Hijab Files Artarmon : Giramondo Publishing , 2018 13182700 2018 selected work poetry

'Maryam Azam’s poems take the mysteries of the hijab as their object of scrutiny. Though shamed and angered by the prejudice towards Muslims the scarf arouses, Azam is also aware of its sensuality and allure, and the power and protection it offers. In ‘A Brief Guide to Hijab Fashion’, ‘Miss Khan Takes off her Hijab’ and ‘Places I’ve Prayed’, she reflects on the rich possibilities of the scarf, the moral values it embodies, and the commitment required to maintain these values in a secular society. In another section, ‘Wallah Bro’, she examines the tensions young Muslims experience when negotiating the technology of modern dating. Azam’s style is simple and direct, and informed with humour: it frames as it reveals, showing how ritual confers dignity on gestures and objects.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

2019 shortlisted ASAL Awards Mary Gilmore Award for a First Book of Poetry
2018 commended Anne Elder Award
Last amended 20 Jan 2020 13:31:17
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