The Butterfly Hunter
Encyclopedia
The Butterfly Hunter is the (as yet) unpublished debut novel
by Birmingham
-based British
writer Dr. Max Malik, which has drawn comparisons with Salman Rushdie's controversial work The Satanic Verses
. The Butterfly Hunter was completed in 2008, and submitted by the author
to the Muslim Writers Awards, in 2008, as an entry in the Novel
category. The author was winner of the Muslim Writer of the Year Award in 2007, and the organisers of the Awards project described his 2008 submission as "one of the best" received. The Butterfly Hunter was a shortlisted nominee in the Novel
category of the Muslim Writers Awards in 2008, along with four other works. However, the book was never submitted to the independent judging panel tasked with adjudicating competition entries.
This omission of The Butterfly Hunter from the judging process has caused much public controversy. The author has claimed that the novel was censored by the Muslim Writers Awards due to its controversial content. However, the organisers of the Awards have strenuously denied the accusation, and have insisted that the matter is under investigation. The organisers have also stated that the omission is likely to have been an oversight, although this claim has met with some public cynicism.
The narrative centres around two British protagonists, Jimmy and Jessica, who become involved in a terrorist plot and are recruited by extremists and become suicide bombers. The novel includes several controversial characters and plot-lines, including sexual abuse of children by a Mosque
teacher and a bisexual Imam
who habitually hires rent boys.
Despite the controversy, and his belief that the organisers of the Muslim Writers Awards found his work "unpalatable", Dr. Max Malik has insisted that the book should not be regarded as "the second coming of The Satanic Verses
", as he believes that the novel is "neither blasphemous nor disrespectful towards any particular group or individual."
Debut novel
A debut novel is the first novel an author publishes. Debut novels are the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to publish in the future...
by Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
-based British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer Dr. Max Malik, which has drawn comparisons with Salman Rushdie's controversial work The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of Prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters...
. The Butterfly Hunter was completed in 2008, and submitted by the author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
to the Muslim Writers Awards, in 2008, as an entry in the Novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
category. The author was winner of the Muslim Writer of the Year Award in 2007, and the organisers of the Awards project described his 2008 submission as "one of the best" received. The Butterfly Hunter was a shortlisted nominee in the Novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
category of the Muslim Writers Awards in 2008, along with four other works. However, the book was never submitted to the independent judging panel tasked with adjudicating competition entries.
This omission of The Butterfly Hunter from the judging process has caused much public controversy. The author has claimed that the novel was censored by the Muslim Writers Awards due to its controversial content. However, the organisers of the Awards have strenuously denied the accusation, and have insisted that the matter is under investigation. The organisers have also stated that the omission is likely to have been an oversight, although this claim has met with some public cynicism.
The narrative centres around two British protagonists, Jimmy and Jessica, who become involved in a terrorist plot and are recruited by extremists and become suicide bombers. The novel includes several controversial characters and plot-lines, including sexual abuse of children by a Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
teacher and a bisexual Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
who habitually hires rent boys.
Despite the controversy, and his belief that the organisers of the Muslim Writers Awards found his work "unpalatable", Dr. Max Malik has insisted that the book should not be regarded as "the second coming of The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of Prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters...
", as he believes that the novel is "neither blasphemous nor disrespectful towards any particular group or individual."
Sources
- Comments on wootton bassett march 2010
- Official website for The Butterfly Hunter
- Muslim author hits out at novel 'censorship', The Asian Today
- Novel 'censored' from Muslim writing competition, Borders and Books etc.