One of our absolute favourite authors in our home have been Julia Donaldson and Dr. Seuss. The books we like to not just read over and over again, but also celebrate and decorate in our home library are “Iggy Peck, Architect,” “Madame Chapeu” and “The Cat in the Hat.” To me as a child, I have felt rhyming words come bring a satisfaction that makes the brain churn more and perhaps this is why when I started putting a challenging story as that of Maryam (RA) into words, it was rhymes that made it easier to explain the most complex of feelings for her story.
What is a verse novel:
It is a story written in rhymes, with no real rules of when and how often the writing rhymes.
The beauty in rhymes:
While rhymes have always been the very first ways language is introduced to the youngest ones, teaching them predictability of what is to come next, and an appreciation for words and sounds, verse novels is a form that is actually gaining immense popularity in recent years, in middle school and young adults too. The undaunting-ness of the rhyming word, invites the most reluctant readers to pick a book too. Otherwise stories or emotions and thoughts that require lengthy descriptions and words, can be put into shorter and crisper words meandering with the intensity of thoughts in a rhythmic way.
Why are verse novels becoming popular?
There is a beauty in rhymes that allows the author to cut through layers to jump directly into the characters and their emotions. This in turn also means that the reader is taken through the story, in an engaging manner, and find him or herself drawn into the character without having to read paragraphs and pages on their description. Feelings can be expressed and difficult topics can be talked about indirectly while still giving us the full emotional picture. In short, it is a non-threatening way of writing and hence can reach out to readers, who may not be book worms yet.
Rhyme in our Deen:
The fact that even the Holy words of Allah in the Qur’an are written in rhymes makes it not only easier for a layman to read the words, but to also remember it, because that is just how mind works. Of course that is where any speck of similarity between Divine Scripture (Kalam-Allah) may have to a human’s effort to write in verse. The point here, in making this comparison, is merely to show that there must be a reason why Our Holy Book, Al-Qur’an is written in rhymes.
To me, rejecting rhymes, is rejecting the beauty in it that is honoured to it by Allah. Since the times of the introduction to Islam, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) did not banish it, rather brought it to the service of islam. His companions wrote in poetic verses praising Islamic faith, culture, history, battles, heroes, and traits of heroes.
Why is Amazing Muslim SuperHERoes in rhyme?
The reason why I chose to write my first book in rhymes is well, firstly, because when I started writing it, that’s how words linked to one another. The other important reason has been that I have wanted to bring the stories of these amazing women, beginning with the story of Hazrat Maryam (RA) that I absolutely love, into words but know the challenge, the responsibility and the emotional baggage that comes with it. I felt that if I were to bring these stories in the form of prose, then the reader would expect it to read like a history book and something not necessarily a cup of tea for every one.
However, when rhymes simplify the story, shorten its length then even the most reluctant reader would be ready to pick it up. It is my dream that my books, about these Amazing Muslim SuperHERoes, is picked not just by those who feel they know Muslim heroes and their traits already, but also those who have a desire to learn more about them, who are yearning to find out their roots and history, but have been pushed away from it because of news, the stereotypes that come with regard to Muslim women, and/or the “serious-ness” of the existing books on them. An easily engage-able book for ALL is the key here, not a book claiming to master each and every fact “in detail”.
Amazing Muslim SuperHERoes 