Sleep Journeys

Azra Abbas was born in 1950 in Kanpur, India, and emigrated to Karachi, Pakistan as a child. She burst onto the contemporary Urdu poetry scene in 1981, with the publication of her book-length prose poem Sleep Journeys (Nind ki Musaafaten). Writing prose poetry was a daring choice at the time and her debut work was a fresh approach, heralding a new beginning in Urdu poetry. Azra’s voice is undeniably the rawest within the Urdu feminist canon. Her unpretentious use of language and her effortless boldness makes her poems startling, yet the depth of thought beneath the surface leaves the reader in a reflective mood. Azra has written seven collections of poetry, two memoirs, a collection of short stories, and a novel. She lives in Karachi and, after recovering from a long illness, continues to write poetry and compose a new novel.