Aiden Shaw's Penis (Blog tour)

 

Aiden Shaw's Penis and Other Stories of Censorship from Around the World 

With an introduction by Coco Khan & illustrations by Daniel Clarke.

Published 6th May 2021 by Imprint 27

From the cover of the book:

Twelve excitingly diverse writers explore what it means to be censored and to break free in this timely anthology.

With stories from London, Cape Town, Manchester, USA, Chile, Iran, Zambia and Nigeria which reach across age, gender, race, sexuality, nationality, style and tone, this collection delivers a global celebration of voices claiming their own space to be heard.

Ali Said’s title story, Aidan Shaw’s Penis, is a wonderfully honest and sensitive autobiographical piece looking at his experiences in the face of official UAE censors, citizens who facilitate the official work through moral policing and Said’s own self-censorship as he denies and obscures the truth of his own sexuality.

Collaboration with official power is a thread through several of the stories but all offer different perspectives, such as an act of survival or a bid for love. The anthology is bold mix of style and form including an eco-fascist dystopia, a vision of an auto-correct technology that takes over the story itself and the ‘censored’ thoughts of a narrator living with mental illness in a society that demonises it. Some of the authors kick against the assumption that censorship is innately bad and look at the role of ‘shame’ in society and how stories often serve the teller, but are also vital in sharing wisdom and having fun.

Introduced by Coco Khan (Guardian, The Good Immigrant and It’s Not About the Burqa), who helped judge the open call, said: ‘Censorship is not just a matter for artists and agitators, reactionaries and revolutionaries, but for every single person daring to speak, act or indeed exist publicly.’

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This collection contains 12 short stories, a mix of both fiction and non-fiction, that delve into different perceptions of the term 'the censor', with a foreword from Coco Khan the author of It's Not About The Burqa - who was also a member of the judging panel that selected the final stories for the book.

The stories cover a wonderful mix of genres, writing styles, and subject matter, which makes them completely fascinating, and I can't remember ever reading a book that challenges my idea of what censorship means quite as much as this one has. The myriad shades of meaning are so thought provoking - the controlling face of censorship of the oppressed; the way we censor ourselves in relationships and to the world outside; the value of small acts of rebellion; even the times when censorship might be considered as a positive thing - it's all here to explore in these 12 stories. They are superb!

It's hard to choose a favourite story, because they are all so beautifully diverse and tug at your conscience and heartstrings in many different ways, but I think these three really stood our for me: Cutings by Michael Harris Cohen really appealed to the my inner librarian with its exploration of how the meaning of a story can be subverted by changing the words; Reflections by Mubanga Kalimamukwento made me sob my heart out in the way it examines changes in attitude and acceptance; and the one that called to me the most, the final story Vestiges by Kiki Gonglewski, with its poignant message of hope set against a dystopian backdrop.

I have laughed and cried (mostly cried 😪) my way through this intriguing book, and been profoundly moved by the words of each of the authors of the incredible stories in this collection. I cannot recommend this one highly enough! 

Aiden Shaw's Penis is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer.

Thank you to Imprint 27 for sending me a hardback copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

The authors:

Ali Said, Catherine Rudolph, Deborah Green, Fernando A. Torres, Kiki Gonglewski, Michael Cohen Harris, Mitra Madadi, Mubanga Kalimamukwento, Nathan Alling Long, Timi Odueso, Selma Carvalho and Stephanie Wilderspin.

INTRODUCING IMPRINT 27: Imprint 27 is a new, bold list to celebrate experimental writing in fiction and non-fiction. Launching in March 2021 to champion breakthrough voices this new list will appeal to a contemporary readership who want to read surprising, provocative and inspiring books that challenge traditional forms. Aiden Shaw’s Penis is the first book to be published by Imprint 27, the new list from Nobrow Press. Imprint 27 will be releasing two more new books in autumn 2021.

Imprint 27 Editorial Director Harriet Birkinshaw said: ‘Our aim is to become home to the next great writing heroes who are not afraid to stand out from the crowd supported by an independent publisher not afraid to take a risk. Censorship seemed such a vital topic for writers today and we put out an open call for writers from all around the world to send us their work. The response has been overwhelming and incredibly diverse across age, gender, race, sexuality, nationality, style and tone. The stories in the collection are powerful, beautiful and surprising.’

ABOUT NOBROW: Nobrow is a best-known for its beautifully produced and award-winning illustrated fiction and non-fiction books. Founded in 2008 Nobrow quickly became a pioneer of innovative graphic storytelling in the UK. One of their first publications was Nobrow Magazine, which published the works of some of the best-known illustrators and comics artists while also giving a platform to new and emerging creators. To date they have encouraged and nurtured visual storytelling across many different formats and over three hundred published books.