Land of No Regrets

A heart-wrenching story of four students who find hope and kinship amidst the challenges of growing up at a harrowing Madrasa in rural Ontario
Nabil, freshly plucked from middle school in Scarborough, is struggling to find his place at Al Haque Islamic Academy. Between the intense religious studies and new rules, he still longs for his past life of baseball, video games, comic books and girls. When he stumbles upon Maaz and Nawaaz doing something they shouldn't be doing, he quickly falls into their company and joins them in their misdeeds. And together with the new transfer student and unruly class clown Farid, the group executes their rebellion.
One day, while exploring the Madrasa at night, the boys discover the diary of a student who lived on the grounds when it was an all-girls Catholic school. Cynthia Lewis' words connect them to a bygone era and inspires them to hatch a plot to escape. They form a pact, and together, their ultimate decision sends them hurtling down a path that changes their lives forever.
Strikingly original, and as poignant as it is humorous, Land of No Regrets is a vibrant, compassionate exploration of faith, friendship, identity, and the true value of freedom.

SADI MUKTADIR was born and raised in Toronto, a second-generation immigrant. He's been published in Joyland Magazine, the Humber Literary Review and Ricepaper Magazine, among others. He was named a finalist for the Thomas Morton Memorial Prize in Literary Excellence in 2019, the third-place winner of the 2018 Humber Literary Review's Emerging Writer Story Contest and a winner of the 2017 "What's Your Story?" contest for Toronto.