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archytas's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
This coming of age story is compelling both in how sharply Zayyan draws her characters, and in how densely she weaves their experiences of nationality, race, religion and migration. At the centre of our tale is Sameer, a driven and ambitious lawyer caught between the high-flying world of corporate takeovers and his family's expectations that he will use his hard-won education to apprentice in the family business as his father and uncles did before him.
From the outset, this felt slightly different to many caught-between-different-worlds narratives in that, frankly, neither of those worlds seem particularly appealing. At work, Sameer is bullied and subtly excluded for being a bit too Muslim. With his family, Sameer is expected to surrender most of his life choices, income and vision. In both worlds, the agency he craves seems to be slipping further away from him.
While the narrative takes Sameer to better options, Zayyan resists romanticising or deproblemicising any of his choices. In Uganda, Sameer finds agency but also, as he grapples with joining a relatively privileged class, struggles to hold on to his sense of cultural identity. Punctuating this journey is unsent letters from his grandfather, used as a diary, which document the history of Uganda as well as the complexity of experiences of Indo-Africans.
I'm not quite sure that Zayyan stuck the landing, with an ending that felt a bit out of tune, but not in a way which changed my overall enjoyment of the book.
In the end, perhaps the book's greatest strength is its refusal to let any character be simply an avatar however, making these lives, like all, a mix of our choices, and personal triumphs and hurts, and sweeping global forces that sometimes we only understand too late.
From the outset, this felt slightly different to many caught-between-different-worlds narratives in that, frankly, neither of those worlds seem particularly appealing. At work, Sameer is bullied and subtly excluded for being a bit too Muslim. With his family, Sameer is expected to surrender most of his life choices, income and vision. In both worlds, the agency he craves seems to be slipping further away from him.
While the narrative takes Sameer to better options, Zayyan resists romanticising or deproblemicising any of his choices. In Uganda, Sameer finds agency but also, as he grapples with joining a relatively privileged class, struggles to hold on to his sense of cultural identity. Punctuating this journey is unsent letters from his grandfather, used as a diary, which document the history of Uganda as well as the complexity of experiences of Indo-Africans.
I'm not quite sure that Zayyan stuck the landing, with an ending that felt a bit out of tune, but not in a way which changed my overall enjoyment of the book.
In the end, perhaps the book's greatest strength is its refusal to let any character be simply an avatar however, making these lives, like all, a mix of our choices, and personal triumphs and hurts, and sweeping global forces that sometimes we only understand too late.
shaclarke's review
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
viktoriakffnk's review
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lanamyerist's review
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
_cecile_'s review
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mrpitmansgranddaughter's review
4.0
Another book where the ending left me frustrated after throwing in an ending for effect. The first 2/3rds of this book are brilliant, thoughtful and clever. We meet our characters, get to know them, sympathise with them, get frustrated with them and then join them for the rest of the journey, and that is where we lost the promise of what this read could have been.
The good: is that this was a read that took me to a new place, with a new perspective and I learnt a lot. I enjoy a dual timeline and I thought the letters were a great way to make the past timeline relative to the current timeline.
It brought so many interesting themes to the table, immigration and racism and career pressures and relationships and culture and the list goes on. In the first half, we began to scratch at these with some really insightful moments.
The not so good: There was enough to end this book with, there was enough to leave it open and on a 'cliff edge' if that was the desire. We left Sameer feeling tremendous guilt and facing an adult relationship not full of compromise and not necessarily 100% happy so it didn't need the cliche ending, yes it reflects earlier moments of the story, but I think again that was rushed and more depth would have been a better alternative to a throwaway ending. I am trying not to spoil it. I feel like I have been negative, this otherwise would have been a glowing review and it doesn't take away from a brilliant debut.
It is a good read, enjoyable, eye-opening and has made me want to read more on Uganda, but I wish the last 3rd had the promise of the first 2/3rds. It's a great debut, and there is so much beauty to this book. This was a Netgalley read for me and I joined a Team Tandem readalong, which enabled me to really stop and think which enhanced my reading experience so a huge thank you to both teams.
The good: is that this was a read that took me to a new place, with a new perspective and I learnt a lot. I enjoy a dual timeline and I thought the letters were a great way to make the past timeline relative to the current timeline.
It brought so many interesting themes to the table, immigration and racism and career pressures and relationships and culture and the list goes on. In the first half, we began to scratch at these with some really insightful moments.
The not so good: There was enough to end this book with, there was enough to leave it open and on a 'cliff edge' if that was the desire. We left Sameer feeling tremendous guilt and facing an adult relationship not full of compromise and not necessarily 100% happy so it didn't need the cliche ending, yes it reflects earlier moments of the story, but I think again that was rushed and more depth would have been a better alternative to a throwaway ending. I am trying not to spoil it. I feel like I have been negative, this otherwise would have been a glowing review and it doesn't take away from a brilliant debut.
It is a good read, enjoyable, eye-opening and has made me want to read more on Uganda, but I wish the last 3rd had the promise of the first 2/3rds. It's a great debut, and there is so much beauty to this book. This was a Netgalley read for me and I joined a Team Tandem readalong, which enabled me to really stop and think which enhanced my reading experience so a huge thank you to both teams.