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y separately published work icon The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif single work   autobiography  
Note: Written with assistance from Robert Hillman.
Issue Details: First known date: 2008... 2008 The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The Rug-Maker of Mazar-e-Sharif is a memoir of Najaf Mazari, an Afghani refugee who travelled to Australia, was detained in Woomera detention centre, went through various trials to gain permanent residency in Australia and eventually opened a rug shop in Prahran, Melbourne, which he still operates today.' (Libraries Australia)

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Teachers' notes via publisher's website.

Notes

  • Dedication: This book is dedicated to all those people of Afghanistan who have lost so much in wars - their houses, their limbs and their lives - and to all people working for peace throughout the world.
  • Epigraph: But the real and lasting victories are those of peace, and not of war. - Emerson.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Elsternwick, Caulfield - St Kilda area, Melbourne - Inner South, Melbourne, Victoria,: Insight Publications , 2008 .
      image of person or book cover 7731795635389099549.jpg
      This image has been sourced from online.
      Extent: 262p.
      Description: illus., ports, map.
      Note/s:
      • Includes glossary and notes (p. 256-262).
      ISBN: 9781921088551 (pbk.)
    • Cheltenham, Brighton - Moorabbin area, Melbourne - Inner South, Melbourne, Victoria,: Wild Dingo Press , 2011 .
      image of person or book cover 856401200308523907.jpg
      Image courtesy of publisher's website.
      Extent: 262p.p.
      Description: illus., map, ports.
      ISBN: 9780980757057
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Other Formats

  • Also sound recording.
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Related Works

Beyond Pity Robert Hillman , 2007 single work prose
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 17-18 February 2007; (p. 32) Griffith Review , Autumn no. 15 2007; (p. 209-220)
Untitled Najaf Mazari , 2008 extract autobiography (The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif)
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian Magazine , 29-30 March 2008; (p. 26-29)
VIEW ALL RELATED WORKS (2)

Works about this Work

Using Literature Circles to Inquire into the Big Themes : Explorig the Refugee Experience Erika Boas , 2012 single work criticism
— Appears in: English in Australia , vol. 47 no. 3 2012; (p. 25-28)
Detention, Displacement and Dissent in Recent Australian Life Writing Michael Jacklin , 2011 single work criticism
— Appears in: Life Writing , December vol. 8 no. 4 2011; (p. 375-385) Narratives of persecution, imprisonment, displacement and exile have been a fundamental aspect of Australian literature: from the convict narratives of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, to writing by refugees and migrants to Australia following World War II, to the narratives of those displaced by more recent conflicts. This paper will focus on two texts published in Australia in the past few years which deal with experiences of persecution and displacement from Afghanistan. Mahboba's Promise (2005) and The Rugmaker of Mazar-e- Sharif (2008) are texts that have to some extent bypassed the quarantining that Gillian Whitlock has argued works to locate potentially disruptive discourse at a safe distance from mainstream consumption. The publications discussed here demonstrate that refugee narratives can negotiate their way into the public sphere and public consciousness. In this process, however, representations of dissent almost necessarily give way to conciliation and integration as former refugee subjects attempt to realign their lives in terms that will provide the best outcomes for themselves, their families and their communities.
Untitled Luisa Percopo , 2010 single work review
— Appears in: Journal of Australian Studies , September vol. 34 no. 3 2010; (p. 405-407)
— Review of Sydney Journals : Reflections 1970-2000 Antigone Kefala , 2008 selected work diary ; The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Dark Times Susan Varga , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Griffith Review , Winter no. 24 2009; (p. 173-180)
[Untitled] Liz Derouet , 2009 single work review
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books for Young Adults , Autumn vol. 17 no. 1 2009; (p. 44)
— Review of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Pick of the Week Bruce Elder , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 3-4 May 2008; (p. 31)
— Review of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Weft and Weave of an Asylum Seeker Thuy On , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 3 May 2008; (p. 23)
— Review of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Books Non-Fiction Barbara Baker , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 3 - 4 May 2008; (p. 29)
— Review of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
One Man's Journey a Tale of Our Times Tim Johnston , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 10-11 May 2008; (p. 13)
— Review of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Deliver Them from Preconceptions Tim Johnston , 2008 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian Literary Review , July vol. 3 no. 6 2008; (p. 8, 10 p.)
— Review of A Burqa and a Hard Place : Three Years in the New Afghanistan Sally Cooper , 2008 single work autobiography ; The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif Najaf Mazari , Robert Hillman , 2008 single work autobiography
Craftsman Stitches His Life Back Together in a Welcoming Land Sushi Das , 2007 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 14 April 2007;
Audio : Interview with Najaf Mazari and Robert Hillman re: their book 'The Rugmaker of Mazir-e-Sharif' Benedict Taylor (interviewer), 2008 2008 single work interview
— Appears in: Pool 2008;
An Afghan's Tale Phillip Adams (interviewer), 2008 2008 single work interview
— Appears in: ABC News [Online] , April 2008;

ABC Radio National Interview from 17/04/2008. Program: Late Night Live with Phillip Adams

Many stories have been written about Afghani refugees arriving in Australia but very few Afghans have told their own stories about where they came from, why they left and how they have made Australia their new home.

Guests: Najaf Mazari - Former Afghan refugee, rug-maker and author. Robert Hillman - Biographer and fiction writer.
Detention, Displacement and Dissent in Recent Australian Life Writing Michael Jacklin , 2011 single work criticism
— Appears in: Life Writing , December vol. 8 no. 4 2011; (p. 375-385) Narratives of persecution, imprisonment, displacement and exile have been a fundamental aspect of Australian literature: from the convict narratives of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, to writing by refugees and migrants to Australia following World War II, to the narratives of those displaced by more recent conflicts. This paper will focus on two texts published in Australia in the past few years which deal with experiences of persecution and displacement from Afghanistan. Mahboba's Promise (2005) and The Rugmaker of Mazar-e- Sharif (2008) are texts that have to some extent bypassed the quarantining that Gillian Whitlock has argued works to locate potentially disruptive discourse at a safe distance from mainstream consumption. The publications discussed here demonstrate that refugee narratives can negotiate their way into the public sphere and public consciousness. In this process, however, representations of dissent almost necessarily give way to conciliation and integration as former refugee subjects attempt to realign their lives in terms that will provide the best outcomes for themselves, their families and their communities.
Dark Times Susan Varga , 2009 single work criticism
— Appears in: Griffith Review , Winter no. 24 2009; (p. 173-180)
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (14)
Last amended 17 Jul 2019 08:38:26
Subjects:
  • c
    Afghanistan,
    c
    South Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
  • c
    Australia,
    c
  • Woomera, Far North South Australia, South Australia,
Settings:
  • c
    Afghanistan,
    c
    South Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
  • Woomera, Far North South Australia, South Australia,
  • Melbourne, Victoria,
  • c
    Pakistan,
    c
    South Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
  • c
    Indonesia,
    c
    Southeast Asia, South and East Asia, Asia,
  • ca. 1975-2007
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