REVIEW: Unicorn: The Memoir of a Muslin Drag Queen by Amrou Al-Kadhi

Start your engines, and may the best memoir... win!

UNICORN: THE MEMOIR OF A MUSLIM DRAG QUEEN by Amrou Al-Kadhi Published on 3rd October 2019 by Fourth Estate

On the surface, it's easy to expect that the memoir of a drag queen could take a very light turn - it could be lots of glitz and glamour, entertaining stories from shows and nights out, with perhaps a glimpse into the realities of identity, queer culture and coming out. Sounds good, right?

With Unicorn, what Amrou Al-Kadhi delivers is so much more powerful and profound than that. Starting with Amrou's childhood as an Iraqi Muslim, raised in a traditionally patriarchal family where adherence and presentation were key aspects of life, this is an incredibly moving, and incredibly well-written, story of self-identity. There's exploration of the ways that social constructs define and restrict who you feel able to be, the particularly powerful role that parents play in defining who we are as people, and even the way that other queer people can be so damaging to a queer identity.

Within just a few pages, I'd fallen in love with this book. With references to The Sims (and our universal need to find inventive ways to ruin their lives and kill them off), Harry Potter, queer TV shows and so much more, it's hard not to fall for Amrou's charm.

In fact, the entire book feels a little like one of those deep conversations that you accidentally end up having with a friend after one too many drinks at the pub, in the best possible way. It feels intimate, intense and a privilege to be a part of.

What Amrou manages to do incredibly well is balance a light, humorous tone with an exploration of some incredibly serious, dark issues including mental health, self-harm, self-loathing, paranoia and much more. With some many heavy topics to discuss it could easily be an obtuse, difficult read, but Amrou manages to balance immensely profound discussions with an incredibly readable style that meant I honestly couldn't put this book down, and felt slightly bereft to not continue their journey once it finished.

As a gay man, there's a lot here I found relatable. The queer community is famed for being both supportive and critical, exclusive and open, empowering and crippling, and that's explored really well in Unicorn. Between the paradoxical homophobia, racism, body shaming and fragile masculinity, it's hard to find a queer person that hasn't found the community a challenging place to be, and Amrou explores this brilliantly.

As someone who's also faced religious and familial pressures with regards to sexuality, I feel I was probably affected by this book more than others might be, but I really think there's something for everyone to take from this.

If you can read this book without learning how to be more human, I'll be shocked.

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I received an advanced review copy via NetGalley, in exchange for an unbiased, honest review. Thanks to Fourth Estate for approving my request. In the interest of disclosure, I am employed by a different division of HarperCollins but that has no impact on my review here, which is honest, unbiased and independent of my work.