God in Pink, the debut novel by Hasan Namir, won the Lambda Literary Award in the category of best gay novel at an awards ceremony in New York on June 6, 2016. Previously it was named to the "Globe 100" list of the best books of 2015 by The Globe and Mail. God in Pink (Arsenal Pulp 2015) is about Ramy, a young Iraqi boy who is gay. Ramy struggles to find a balance between his sexual yearnings and his culture. Having lost his parents, he lives with his strict brother and sister-in-law, who pressure Ramy to marry. Eventually Ramy turns to Ammar, a sheikh at a local mosque. A searing exploration of the world of gay Muslims in Iraq, the book contains graphic depictions of violence juxtaposed against serene moments of beauty.

His debut collection of poetry, War/Torn (Book Thug $18) was published in 2019.

He published a children's picture book, The Name I Call Myself (Arsenal Pulp $19.95) in 2020.

Another poetry book, Umbilical Cord (Book Thug $20) reflects on parenting, fatherhood and hope. Namir's verses document the journey that he and his husband took to have a child. Between love letters to their young son, Namir shares insight into his love story with his husband, the complexities of the IVF surrogacy process and the first year as a family of three.

Born in Iraq in 1987, Hasan Namir came to Canada at a young age. He holds a BA in English from Simon Fraser University. Namir lives in Vancouver.

BOOKS

God in Pink (Arsenal Pulp, 2015) $17.95 978-1-55152-607-2

War/Torn (Book Thug, 2019) $18 978-1-77166-493-6

The Name I Call Myself (Arsenal Pulp, 2020) $19.95 9781551528090

Umbilical Cord (Book*hug, 2021) $20 9781771667180

[BCBW 2020]