On Belonging: Reflections of a Renegade Guide

by Saira Niazi

Returning to Lahore after almost a decade, wandering London guide and community worker Saira Niazi reflects on what it means to belong on both a personal and a universal level.

In a series of personal essays on topics including exploration, love, faith, transience, mental health and being a woman of colour, Niazi shares her strange and unlikely journey towards becoming a wandering guide. She draws upon the stories, experiences, and insights of the extraordinary people she has met along the way, from monks and mudlarks to storytellers and scientists, and celebrates the many different kinds of beautiful lives that exist.

Unknown Binding

About the author

Saira Niazi is a London based writer, community worker, renegade guide and founder of the Living London project.

Her writing has been published in various magazines and journals including Huck, Dazed, Time Out, the New Statesman and University of Arts London's Insights. On Belonging: Reflections of a Renegade Guide is Niazi's seventh book.

Reviews

[Gemma Seltzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anais Nin says “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage” and its a quote used in the final essay of this brilliant collection by Londoner Saira Niazi. It perfectly summaries Niazi's experience as a renegade guide, community activist and wanderer.

This is a thoughtful and considered book, framed by the author's arrival and then departure from Lahore, her motherland. Lahore's sounds and rhythms clarify her relationship with London, a place she can feel free and independent. She walks and explores both cities on foot and in her memories, and the stories of each are told through the strangers and tour guests she meets, including priests and gurus, artists and elders, chefs and gardeners, from across the world.

"On Belonging" is about how to balance inner and outer worlds, how to listen to yourself and to others, and the ways people and place interlink. It's about faith and gender, solitude and connectedness, travel and stillness. Each essay offers a perspective on Niazi's work as a London tour guide, seeking ways to connect with communities and offer people the opportunity not just to see London, but to connect with others and explore ideas together.

A great read that shows London and Lahore in a bright, illuminating light. An ode to cities and to the glorious people who call it home.

[Dominika · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written book of essays about exploration, belonging, loss, family and many other themes. The book is full of interesting encounters with so many fascinating real people the author has had while guiding in London and around - it reminds you of the richness of life (and the city). The writing is contemplative and introspective, while being engaging throughout. I found it a nourishing and restoring read during the current turbulent times and I really connected with Saira's love of walking and exploring, having rediscovered this simple pleasure during the pandemic. I feel it's one of the those books I will want to return to again and again.

[W.M. Aslam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed Saira Niazi’s On Belonging: Reflections of a Renegade Guide. Her writing is candid, inviting and with a bittersweet poignancy. It is a style that only she could conjure. At times I felt like I was in her very shoes, that I had walked the streets of London, Lahore and all of the many other exotic places she has been fortunate enough to have traversed. Saira’s keen eye for detail (she never misses a beat) fired my imagination, conjuring up images of bustling markets, children laughing on rooftops and London’s infamous pollution ridden roads. I felt empathy towards her and the characters she introduced, from artists, photographers and travellers to the myriad of everyday people she encountered and befriended. Her style of writing has an international feel, something I can relate to and appreciate. Her writing also has a distinctive narrative, one that could be developed, to suit a novel, perhaps? On Belonging is definitely worth a read. It is a book that will both surprise and educate.

[Emily Vanns]

At many moments when reading On Belonging I felt as if Saira had taken my own thoughts and feelings right from my mind and onto the page. It is such a beautiful reminder that even with such different backgrounds and experiences, wanting to belong is deeply universal. It left me with a sense of connection and thinking about all of those memorable moments in my own life. The people and places that might seem insignificant to some, but become an intrinsic part of who you are.
If you are able to get through the whole book without venturing into the woods, city streets or wild spaces on your doorstep you have more will power than me!

[Selma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book in a long time that truly moved me. I cried, I laughed, I reflected on my own life and memories. Saira explored her life as a guide, the friendships formed, the places visited. She explored emotions, community, faith, identity, love, communication. I feel moved, I felt truly connected to the words. I feel like my perspective on my own life has shifted. I have become more open to adventure, to life.

The beautiful stories of people remind me that everyone has a magic inside of them. We are all alike. Saira wrote this with all her heart and soul. Exceptional. Remarkable.

[Laura Zurowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

After meeting Saira in person this past summer and reading her recent book, "Renegade Guides: The Places We Go, the Stories We Share", I was curious to see what her first book was all about. "On Belonging: Reflections of a Renegade Guide" is a super enjoyable combination of autobiography and travelogue detailing her years of community work and exploring England and much of the world. It's a chatty, personal story that immediately draws the reader into the highs and lows of Saira's emotions, thoughts, and adventures.

[Catalina Gonzalez-Hirst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saira paints pictures with her words using the colours and emotions of her adventures to draw you into her world. The stories she tells and characters she depicts makes us realise how much life is outside our four walls and how brave it is to go out and seek it.
On belonging gives any of us who have searched for some sense of belonging a chance to find a kindred spirit in Saira.
Very powerfully reflective book which i couldnt recommend more. Thank you for sharing with us Saira.

[Myra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I usually get through books very quickly but I spent over a week on this although it’s not too lengthy. I read it slowly and attentively in every free moment I got.

There’s so much to say about it, but I don’t know where to begin. I have related to it in so many ways and also been greatly inspired.

It’s amazing to hear about a British, Muslim, Pakistani sister taking an unconventional route in life.

I can’t wait to read it again soon.

[David Lindo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had the pleasure of meeting Saira and she is a highly focussed and committed woman who strongly believes in the power of nature and the environment.

This positive energy comes across in her eloquently written book. Inspirational stories that will drive you into the waiting and welcoming arms of nature.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book!