Nosheen is a Clinical Trial Practitioner working within the Children's Clinical Research team at Royal London. She works between sites at both Royal London and Whipps Cross hospital, where she recruits patients to paediatric studies covering a range of specialties, such as infectious diseases, diabetes and gastroenterology to name a few.
In her spare time, she loves to write and has a poetry page on Instagram, called @dear.gentle.souls, where she shares her writing. She is also a huge football and Arsenal fan and is hoping Arsenal can finally lift the Premier League trophy again at the end of this season this year!
The autobiography of Malcolm X – Malcolm X
Celebrated and vilified the world over for his courageous but bitter fight to gain for millions of black men and women the equality and respect denied them by their white neighbours, Malcolm X inspired as many people in the United States as he caused to fear him.
His remarkable autobiography, completed just before his murder in 1965, ranges from Omaha and Michigan to Harlem and Mecca, and tells of a young, disenfranchised man whose descent into drug addition, robbery and prison was only reversed by his belief in the rights struggle for black America, and his conversion to the Nation of Islam.
Not only is this an enormously important record of the Civil Rights Movement in America, but also the scintillating story of a man who refused to allow anyone to tell him who or what he was.
Nosheen says: "The book that started my venture into non-fiction! It’s an extraordinary and inspiring look inside the life of Malcolm X – still relevant to this day. "
The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
Afghanistan, 1975: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives. After the Russians invade and the family is forced to flee to America, Amir realises that one day he must return to Afghanistan under Taliban rule to find the one thing that his new world cannot grant him: redemption.
Nosheen says: "A powerful, emotional read about friendship and redemption. The Kite Runner is one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve read it."
Northern Lights (His Dark Materials) – Philip Pullman
Lyra Belacqua lives half-wild and carefree among the scholars of Jordan College, with her daemon, Pantalaimon, always by her side.
But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle – a struggle born of stolen children, witch clans and armoured bears.
As she hurtles towards danger in the cold far North, Lyra never suspects the shocking truth: she alone is destined to win, or to lose, the biggest battle imaginable.
Nosheen says: "A magical, alternate world that captured my mind as a child and got me hooked into fantasy fiction!"
Unfortunately, it was Paradise – Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish is a literary rarity: at once critically acclaimed as one of the most important poets in the Arabic language, and beloved as the voice of his people. A legend in Palestine, his lyrics are sung by fieldworkers and schoolchildren. He has assimilated some of the world's oldest literary traditions while simultaneously struggling to open new possibilities for poetry. This collection spans Darwish's entire career, nearly four decades, revealing an impressive range of expression and form.
Nosheen says: "Being an aspiring poet myself, I had to include a poetry collection in the list! Mahmoud Darwish's collection of poems is about resistance, hope and homelands, and are eye-opening to the struggles of Palestinian people, which unfortunately is still ongoing."
Conversations on love - with Philippa Perry, Dolly Alderton, Roxane Gay, Stephen Grosz,
Esther Perel, and many more
After years of feeling that love was always out of reach, journalist Natasha Lunn set out to understand how relationships work and evolve over a lifetime. She turned to authors and experts to learn about their experiences, as well as drawing on her own, asking: How do we find love? How do we sustain it? And how do we survive when we lose it?
Nosheen says: "A thought-provoking collection of personal essays and interviews that explores love in all its forms. It offers fresh insights, but you’ll find yourself relating to so much of it."
Still to read...
The Mountains Sing – Nguyen Phan Que Mai
One family, two generations of women and a war that will change their lives forever
Ha Noi, 1972. Hương and her grandmother, Trần Diệu Lan, cling to one another in their improvised shelter as American bombs fall around them. For Trần Diệu Lan, forced to flee the family farm with her six children decades earlier as the Communist government rose to power in the North, this experience is horribly familiar. Seen through the eyes of these two unforgettable women, The Mountains Sing captures their defiance and determination, hope and unexpected joy.
Nosheen says: "This is next on my to-read list. It’s a lyrical tale about war, love, and loss, and supposedly, fans of The Kite Runner will like this, so I’m intrigued to read it!"
Luxury Item
"Completely impractical, but a lifetime supply of chocolate would keep me happy for a long time!"