That was his problem. Sam was sure of it. He couldn't be a girl. But maybe if he waited out these years in boys' clothes and short hair, he would grow up enough to want to be a woman. He would wake up and this part of him would be gone, like rain and wind wearing down a hillside.
-- Narration (Sea of Islands)

Importance: This narrative passage, from early in the novel, introduces how Sam begins his journey in the novel feeling conflicted about his gender identity. The Pakistani tradition of bacha posh, which Yasmin initially imposes on Sam without his input, concludes with the women shedding her appearance and identity as a male in adulthood. However, as we will see from Sam's journey throughout the novel, he coincidentally happens to be a transgender person, who has been made to go through the tradition of bacha posh, which does not in fact have anything to...