Naeem Murr (He/Him)

Averill Murr

Naeem Murr is the author of several novels, including, "The Boy," which was a New York Times Notable Book, and "The Perfect Man," awarded The Commonwealth Writers' Prize for the Best Book of Europe and South Asia. It was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize. His new novel is "Every Exit Brings You Home." A former Stegner Fellow at Stanford, among his many awards are a PEN Beyond Margins Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He lives in Chicago.

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Awards: Guggenheim Fellow, PEN Literary Award, Pushcart Prize, Longlisted for the Booker award, Commonwealth Prize for the Best Book of Europe and South Asia

Communities: Mixed Race

Stories of Survival

What does it mean to break free from trauma, expectation, or identities that have been imposed upon us? In this session, authors T. Kira Madden, Naeem Murr and Eshani Surya will explore the courage it takes to reclaim agency and rebuild the self ... and how liberation may come from quiet act of telling one’s own story.

Student Union Kachina (Seats 100)  
Sat, Mar 14, 11:30 am - 12:25 pm
Fiction / Literature
Signing area: UA Campus Store Book Sales (Mall) (following presentation)  

Panelists: T Kira Madden, Naeem Murr, Eshani Surya
Moderator: Natalia Gabrielsen

Love and the Stories We Tell

What drives our desire to connect? How do love and longing reveal who we really are? In this panel, our three authors will explore the exhilaration, confusion, and vulnerability of intimacy. They will reflect on the humor, tenderness, and heartbreak that define our closest relationships.

Student Union Sabino (Seats 87)  
Sun, Mar 15, 2:30 pm - 3:25 pm
Fiction / Literature
Signing area: UA Campus Store Book Sales (Mall) (following presentation)  

Panelists: Naeem Murr, Helen Schulman, Alejandro Varela
Moderator: Rae Goodnight

Books:

Every Exit Brings You Home

A Novel
Fiction / Literature
W. W. Norton, Incorporated
February 2026
ISBN 9781324117902
336 pages

The Perfect Man

A Novel
Fiction / Literature
Random House Publishing Group
April 2007
ISBN 9780812977011
464 pages