We need new stories!

We need new stories was recommended to me by a colleague and I was sufficiently intrigued by her recommendation to buy my own copy of the book and dive into it. We need new stories is written by Sudanese-born British journalist, Nesrine Malik, who writes for The Guardian. Malik tackles old frames of reference by exploring six toxic myths: gender equality, political correctness, free speech, identity politics, virtuous origin, and the reliable narrator. These myths were selected by Malik as the strongest influences on our 'age of discontent', highlighting the flawed system in which we operate and how this system perpetuates inequalities through the powerful who are desperately trying to hold onto their supremacy.

We need new stories | Nesrine Malik | Published May 2020 | Read July 2025

So many thoughts about this book! First of all, the author offers a unique perspective based on her personal and professional experiences. Malik is a Muslim woman, born in the Sudan and raised in the Middle East. She has scars from navigating the British journalistic battleground to inform her work. The story of Nesrine Malik herself was fascinating to read about.

The clever way the book is constructed is a good starting point for my review. Malik tackles six weighty toxic myths by dedicating a chapter to each one. Malik does this work to address the "very obvious ways in which history, race, gender and liberal values are disrupting a centuries-old establishment of hierarchies which is paying dividends for fewer and fewer people" (page 8). Malik's intent is to explore the context in which resistance takes place through the myths she dissects to show how they act as roadblocks for progress, hence the notion of the need for "new stories".

Malik frames much of her analysis around the Brexit vote and Donald Trump's first election victory and term as US president, drawing parallels between the Britain and the United States and the current sorry state of the world. Malik's central argument is that the (white male) patriarchy seated within conservative and nationalistic modern societies holds its dominant position through the reinforcement of the myths she analyses in the book.

It does feel as if the book is aimed at a liberal audience and I wonder whether anyone from the other end of the political spectrum would read it. Other reviewers have commented similarly, that the book serves more as confirmation for those who align with Malik's views than as a tool for converting those who do not. I found myself nodding on the regular (Yes! That's it!) as I read each of the chapters. I agreed with Malik's analysis pretty much 100% of the time so it was easy for me to feel satisfied with my reading experience. There was a lack of counterbalance to the analysis, though, and her analysis rests on a unquestioning acceptance of her point of view. There is little in the way of a serious critique of the 'other side' of the argument nor how to address the myths and debate different perspectives. I sit firmly on the left, but I can see how Malik's left/right binary approach fell short, and again I wonder if Malik could have tackled the myths with more balance to reinforce her arguments.

The chapters that resonated most with me were the ones that tackle the myths of free speech, political correctness, and virtuous origin. Malik frames political correctness as a manufactured myth that hinders society's ability to address inequality, diverting attention away from the real issues to fabricated injustices around democratic freedoms. This is an astute observation. Other points Malik makes that resonate with me include the ones around free speech (freedom of expression, not freedom from objection or consequences, especially when used as a platform to spread hate) and virtuous origin, the latter masking current injustices by focussing on a distorted, myopic and unnecessarily glorified past.

I would like to go back and read the book again, too, as there's a lot to unpack. I found my head was spinning by the time I'd finished it. Malik is clearly a highly intelligent woman, but her writing style involves a lot of wordy, meandering sentences that I had trouble following. I am the last person to criticise this writing style, as I am a serial offender myself. However, when the material is complex, it is easy to get lost in long sentences. Moreover, the book is an odd mix of an academic read (requiring a lot of thinking and re-reading bits to get the point) and journalistic one (as one would expect of a journalist!), where many of the sources cited are media- rather than research-based. As one reviewer on Goodreads commented, Malik shies away from explanation and critique of her sources and seems to expect the reader to accept them at face value. This seems at odds with the myths she interrogates, especially the reliable narrator.

I understand (I think!) the point Malik is trying to make overall with her book: until we recognise, understand, and tackle the myths she analyses, we cannot progress with social justice and equality, largely because of the strong and abiding influence of the toxic myths on society. I found her observations to be astute and insightful, I just wish the book offers more on how to address the myths, as I noted above. Yes, Malik absolutely challenges the validity of the myths and their influence on social justice, but I felt slightly dissatisfied at the lack of discussion of ways forward. My critique aside, I still recommend We need new stories if you want to be stretched intellectually and have a good old think about the current sorry state of the world, especially if you are already on board the left-leaning train.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐