Reviews

The Bad Muslim Discount by Syed M. Masood

Only show reviews with written explanations

izali's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

It’s an insightful book relating to two peoples individual experiences with religion and how that experience can shape who they become and what they believe. The book remained respectful of Islam however there were still some moments that felt like the joke was walking the line of appropriate between offensive. But overall, and interesting and entertaining read

darlenechatt's review

Go to review page

emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

feliciasrose's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.5

Mix of audio and reading. Probably primarily reading the book. I'm having a difficult time rating this book. The family dynamics of both leads made me angry at different moments so my overall enjoyment was lowered by lack of "good parenting". I also felt like Safwa was easy to root for but also infuriating. She let the negativity of the people around her at times make her into a sometimes bad person but I guess that is what the author was trying to illustrate to us - people are a product of their upbringing. I thought Anvar was easily so likeable and the way that others around him treated him made me so frustrated. Personally I didn't often feel him being overly elitist as many depicted him to be. He was smart and he seemed to have solid grounding in how he felt about things. I don't think that is a negative. I found myself easily rooting for him and frustrated with the way others addressed his behavior. I can agree he did a poor job of reaching out to others but who could you trust when you spent so much time hiding yourself from people you should be able to be your true self with in life. I didn't like Zuha at times and found myself unwilling to root for the two of them but they had so many cute relationship moments that I had to be happy for them in the end. So yeah. Idk man. I'm between a 3 and a 4 so we'll put ourselves in the middle. Also want to add I chuckled at several points in this story and appreciated the humor brought to these very real situations - all life is not pain. I'd be interested to read more from Syed Masood.

spatterson12's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

A story of two Muslim families told from the perspective of the youngest children of each. One family story is told through the eyes of the daughter, who lost her mom at a young age and was responsible to care for her sick brother as her dad was held captive. Her and her dad eventually move to America, but that doesn’t mean everything is as happy as the TV sitcoms her mom used to watch on repeat. The other family story is told through the eyes of the son, who struggles with his faith and his family’s admiration for his perfect older brother. This book spans about 20 years or so. TW: Domestic violence

dinasamimi's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Was hoping for more from this. Plotlines were pretty one dimensional -- although this is set across several countries/locations, I didn't feel much movement. Still searching for stories about Muslims that don't somehow tie to terrorism.

jess_mango's review

Go to review page

4.0

The Bad Muslim Discount tells the story of two Muslim characters, whose lives eventually intersect.

Anvar grew up in Pakistan in the 1990's and his family later moves to California. Anvar is the sarcastic, witty one in the family and isn't the best at following Muslim practices. Meanwhile his mom and brother who are model Muslims are more readily accepted in their new community.

Safwa is a young woman who grows up at the same time in war-torn Baghdad. After her mother and brother die, Safwa and her conservative, ill-tempered father are determined to make their way to the US to have a better life. Safwa makes a regrettable deal with a young man who promises that he can get them all to America.

The book is a clever commentary on the life of Muslims in the modern world and particularly on the experience of Muslim immigrants in the US. There are moments of dark humor in the book and it helps add some levity to balance Safwa's traumatic experiences. The "present day" of the book is right around the time when Trump is elected president and the characters express their concerns over Trump's proposed Muslim Ban.

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!