Author Saira Sheikh returned to Islamabad on Friday with Healing in the Shadow of Loss, a book that has grown from a self-published work into a traditionally published title with readers across Pakistan. After well-attended events in Lahore and Karachi, the Islamabad stop on her nationwide tour reflected the book’s growing reach and the public’s increasing interest in stories that speak to real lives and real emotions.
Author Saira Sheikh brings her healing story home
By Zia ur Rahman
ISLAMABAD, Aug 07 (APP): Author Saira Sheikh returned to Islamabad on Friday with Healing in the Shadow of Loss, a book that has grown from a self-published work into a traditionally published title with readers across Pakistan. After well-attended events in Lahore and Karachi, the Islamabad stop on her nationwide tour reflected the book’s growing reach and the public’s increasing interest in stories that speak to real lives and real emotions.
Hosted at Muds Café, the evening unfolded less like a formal book launch and more like an intimate gathering. The discussion, moderated by Dubai-based Pakistani author and certified SCPC coach Sammar Shabir, soon moved beyond the pages of the book. Readers spoke about losing parents, partners and friends. Others reflected on family, loneliness and the slow, uncertain path towards healing.
As the allotted time came to an end, the questions continued. No one seemed ready to leave.
For Sheikh, Islamabad was more than another stop on the tour. It was where the journey had begun. She first introduced Healing in the Shadow of Loss here last year as a self-published book. Since then, it has travelled through book clubs, universities, reading circles and homes across the country. Word of mouth carried it further, eventually leading to its publication by Liberty Books.
“When I first released the book, I only hoped it would help a few people feel less alone,” Sheikh said. Seeing readers across Pakistan connect with it has been deeply moving.
The book draws from Sheikh’s own experiences rather than fiction. It does not promise quick fixes or ready-made answers. Instead, it invites readers to sit with grief, understand it and accept that healing follows its own course.
Rooted in Pakistani family life, the book explores emotions many people experience but rarely discuss. It looks at changing family roles after a loss, the weight of unspoken expectations and the quiet ways people carry sorrow while trying to move forward.
That honesty appears to be at the heart of the book’s success. Readers from different backgrounds have reached out to Sheikh, saying they finally found words for feelings they had struggled to express. Mental health advocates, educators and book clubs have also embraced the work for bringing emotional wellbeing into conversations shaped by local culture rather than borrowed ideas.
Talking to APP, renowned physician Dr Rubia Rai described the work as more than a book, saying Sheikh had taken a deeply felt, real-life experience and woven it into words across its pages. She said the strength of the work lay in its ability to give expression to emotions that people often feel but find difficult to articulate.
Journalist Maryam, told APP that women often develop a particularly profound understanding of social pain and its emotional dimensions because of the many roles, transitions and experiences they encounter throughout life. She said Sheikh’s writing captured those emotions in a way that could resonate with people beyond individual circumstances.
Former bureaucrat Rai Riaz Hussain told APP that at a time when serious writing and the culture of authorship appeared to be diminishing, Sheikh’s ability to produce such a compelling work deserved appreciation. He termed the book a remarkable contribution and said efforts that encourage people to read, reflect and engage with human experiences should be celebrated.
Even the book’s cover reflects that message. Designed by Sheikh herself, it features an origami boat floating on calm water, a childhood memory transformed into a symbol of hope. It suggests that while storms may come, it is still possible to stay afloat.
The growing response to Healing in the Shadow of Loss also reflects a wider shift. Human-interest stories that once remained private are finding space in public conversations. Readers today are looking beyond entertainment. They are searching for books that help them understand themselves and those around them.
That spirit filled the café throughout the evening. Cups of tea and coffee were refilled. Books were signed. Conversations flowed between strangers who, for a brief moment, found common ground in shared experiences of love, loss and resilience.
As the event drew to a close, Sheikh stayed behind, listening patiently to every reader who wished to speak. The evening had started as a book event. It ended as something quieter and more meaningful a reminder that while grief is deeply personal, healing is often found in the simple comfort of being heard.
In an age marked by uncertainty, personal loss and emotional strain, books that speak with honesty rather than certainty are finding a deeper place in people’s lives. For many in the audience, Sheikh’s work was more than a story about grief. It was a gentle reminder that pain is a shared human experience, and that healing often begins when people find the courage to speak and the willingness to listen.
