IDs: Queer, Sapphic, Blind, Disabled, POC
Author IDs: POC, Sapphic, Blind, Disabled 

Al-Mohamed’s novella is an #ownvoices story of Azulea, a queer blind woman living in a city that holds the gates to other worlds. Her family are the archivists in this city. They interview people traveling through the gates and gather oral histories of different worlds and people. Azulea is in training to be an archivist, as a team with her cousin Penny. Penny has trouble learning languages, so Azulea serves as the interviewer and translator, while Penny transcribes. Azulea has a perfect memory and is an incredible audio learner. She doesn’t forget anything that she hears. Near the beginning of the novella, Azulea’s grandmother, the only family member that supported her becoming an archivist, is murdered. No one can figure out what happened to her, and Azulea decides to take matters into her own hands. With some help from her community, she discovers who is murdering her family members and why, despite the complete lack of faith any of her family members had in her. Al-Mohamed’s novella gives us a story of a queer, disabled woman who is capable, smart, and resourceful. What is particularly interesting about this novella, however, is its representation of blindness. Because Azulea is blind, we get very little physical description in the novella. We do get some, as Azulea can see some colors, shapes, etc. However, we only really get to see what Azulea herself can see. This makes for a really interesting and embodied reading experience. This also means that we traverse spaces the same way that Azulea does. In doing so, we see all the ways that Azulea’s city is inaccessible to her. We also see her desire to travel to other worlds, and the ways that her family tells her that this is impossible. Al-Mohamed’s novella challenges not only the ways that space is physically inaccessible for many disabled people, but also the ways that it is socially inaccessible. Disabled people are told over and over again that they cannot do things that able-bodied people do. Al-Mohamed’s novella challenges that, through Azulea’s belief in herself, and her community’s support.