<span class="vcard">Razzaq Mohammed</span>
Razzaq Mohammed
2025 Book Posts Books Horror moviesLeave a comment

Ink, Film, and Fright: Horror Recap 2024–2025

Horror, especially, gothic horror literature has captivated me since childhood, forming an essential part of my childhood memories. Its influence has seeped into many of my other passions, from reading and writing to the way I travel and explore the world. It’s been a while since I last shared my favorite books and movies, my previous posts date back to 2015 with an update on movies in 2021. This post is a recap of the movies/TV shows I have watched and books I have read over the past year or so.

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The 13 Best Horror Stories of All time || A Book Post

This is a collection of classic horror fiction written by some of the greatest writers of horror including Bram Stoker, Edgar Allan Poe, H. P. Lovecraft and Algernon Blackwood (who is my favorite). Spanning from 1872 to 1948 these stories represent the classic age of horror.

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History of Islam in 21 Women || A 10 point book review

Muslim women have played an important part in Islam’s history throughout the ages, from seventh-century Mecca to 21st century United States of America. This book explores the life and achievements of 21 such extraordinary Muslim women from different parts of the world and eras. From Khadijah, the first believer to Maryam Mirzakhani, the celebrated mathematician (after whom the Maryam Mirzakhani Award in Mathematics is named) this book looks at some truly exceptional women.

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Islamic Empires || A 10 point book review

Since the dawn of civilization Muslims have built some of the world’s greatest cities. As the author of this book, Justin Marozzi says “Civilization was by definition an urban phenomenon, and no one did cities quite like the Muslims.” This city building peaked during the Islamic Golden Age. In this book, the author explores the major Muslim cities starting from 7th century Mecca to the mind boggling rise of Dubai and Doha in the 21st century.

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Guinness World Record Hike at Cypress Mountain, Vancouver, Canada

A few weeks ago, I helped set up a Guinness World Record, alongside 1,566 others! The record was for “The most people hiking simultaneously”. We broke the previous record of 815 hikers set in Kurdistan, Iraq. Given how outdoor-mad the people of Vancouver are, it felt right to see the record now belong here.

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Mecca: The Sacred City || A 10 point book review

Mecca is the most important religious place for Muslims all over the world. It is, as the author mentions, the heart of Islam. It’s the direction Muslims face when they pray and the site of the annual pilgrimage of Haj, which is performed by almost 2 Million people every year. It’s not for nothing that the word ‘Mecca’ has entered the English language meaning “a place regarded as a center for a specific group, activity, or interest” (Merriam-Webster). This book details the history of the city from pre Islamic times to the modern era. Filled with insights dealing with both religious and non-religious aspects, this books examines the social, physical and cultural points that makes Mecca one of the most influential cities on Earth.

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Horror: A Literary History || A 10 point book review

This book, as the name suggests, is a history of horror fiction i.e. horror in the written form; short stories, novellas, novels etc. It starts from the first gothic horror novel which was published in 1764, The Castle of Otranto (which I have read and written about here) and ends with the horror of modern times which is dominated by one author, Stephen King. Over the course of seven chapters, each written by an expert, the book traces the evolution of horror over the past 250 years.

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Elk Mountain Hike, Chilliwack, BC, Canada

Standing near the side of the trail which ran near the edge of the mountain, I had a view of the surrounding areas. But for now the view was completely obscured by a thick veil of fog. As I stood there, the fog would sometimes clear to reveal spectacular views and then ever so slowly the view would disappear again. Far away I could see a solitary house surrounded by fields. This house would appear and disappear with the fog. I felt like the protagonist of a gothic horror short story, who after traversing a mountain trail is just about to reach a mysterious house. It felt surreal.

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Print & the Urdu Public || A 10 point book review

Madinah was an Urdu newspaper which was published from a small town called Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh, India from 1912 till 1973. This book is primarily a study of this hugely influential newspaper and the time and space of its existence. The author, Megan Eaton Robb, who is an Associate Professor in Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania looks at the prevailing political and religious climate of the early 1900s India and how Muslims of small localities or qasbahs used newspapers printed in their qasbahs to create a discourse unique to them and went on to become an influential voice nationally as well as internationally. This book is also a good reminder of the role played by Muslims in India’s freedom struggle.