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prrrrrsh's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-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
4.5
Absolutely loved this book, until the last section. Very moving, honest and raw. An intimate look into a Muslim american family and the ways that our actions and words affect those closest to us. The only thing that knocked it down half a star for me was the the final part, when the POV switched to the father’s. I felt like it over-explained and lost some of the emotion that came from the character’s actions in the first sections of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
Moderate: Car accident, Drug use, and Islamophobia
audreylee's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
3.5 stars. A book of family betrayals, love, tenderness, and forgiveness. The story bounced along much as memories do, dwelling first on this memory from age 5 and that one from age 16. It was a beautifully wrought picture of a family in all its glories and shames. I so wanted that specific resolution...but that is a me problem.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Racism
saracatalyst's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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
5.0
A Place for Us is a beautiful book about family, generational change, and finding your place in the world. The specific context is a Muslim Indian family in which the parents are immigrants and the children are first generation Americans. As a white woman who studied STEM, I had little prior knowledge of these cultural intersections to draw on going into this book. I feel like a learned a lot and the author did a good job of providing a nuanced and complicated image of both the culture and the specific characters. The character development was great for most of the characters, but I felt like the middle child, Huda, was largely left out of much of the story. The narrative is nonlinear and made me think of The God of Small Things in some ways.
Overall I would recommend this book. I could understand some people liking it less than me if you really need a story to be plot-driven or fast paced. There's plenty of plot, but large sections are primarily character-driven, and the book is on the longer side. I'm always a big fan of family epics like this. If you liked Pachinko, I could see you really enjoying this book.
Overall I would recommend this book. I could understand some people liking it less than me if you really need a story to be plot-driven or fast paced. There's plenty of plot, but large sections are primarily character-driven, and the book is on the longer side. I'm always a big fan of family epics like this. If you liked Pachinko, I could see you really enjoying this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia
Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
valenblr's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Drug abuse, Drug use, Islamophobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Sexism
samiaba15's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Hate crime, Islamophobia, and Drug abuse
anjbhat's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
4.5 shimmering stars not unlike the ones the father in this story, Rafiq, taught his children to turn to when in pain; stars I cannot help but round up to 5. The rating I give to books that I'll think of long after I've finished it and perhaps forever.
Like the family Mirza writes about with such compassion and grace, this is not a book without flaws and yet I love it wholly. Even if there is just a little something more I want from the story, I can't deny that as it stands, this novel was evocative, lyrical, devastating... and thus entirely unforgettable. When I was just five pages in it struck me that I would cry; already the writing was so imbued with a gentle sorrow, the kind we have all carried with us before. I felt my eyes mist up throughout but the tears really streamed down my face the whole of the final chapter.
Like the family Mirza writes about with such compassion and grace, this is not a book without flaws and yet I love it wholly. Even if there is just a little something more I want from the story, I can't deny that as it stands, this novel was evocative, lyrical, devastating... and thus entirely unforgettable. When I was just five pages in it struck me that I would cry; already the writing was so imbued with a gentle sorrow, the kind we have all carried with us before. I felt my eyes mist up throughout but the tears really streamed down my face the whole of the final chapter.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism
Minor: Islamophobia, Racism, Racial slurs, and Miscarriage
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