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A review by zoemig
A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena
3.0
When I received a copy of A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena in the mail, I decided to read it because of the author (born in Mumbai but raised in Riyadh, Jeddah and Toronto) and setting (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia). The book begins with sixteen-year-old Zarin, dead in a car crash with eighteen-year-old Porus. The story is then told through a variety of perspectives and flashbacks, leading to the moment of the characters deaths. It's definitely one of those stories where you keep hoping for a happy ending, despite knowing from the beginning how things turned out––but not exactly why.
Despite the bright and cheery looking cover, A Girl Like That is a very dark and emotional book. It deals with a lot of serious issues, and they are handled thoughtfully, but the book as a whole felt a bit scattered and just had a very difficult time keeping my attention. I ended up taking almost 2 months to read the book. That said, I really appreciated the perspective and I felt like I learned a lot about a different culture and life through Zarin's story. There is a lot of complexity to this story, and I really liked that Zarin was not who you might have expected. I'd definitely pick up a future book by Bhathena, whose second novel, The Beauty of the Moment, releases in 2019.
Despite the bright and cheery looking cover, A Girl Like That is a very dark and emotional book. It deals with a lot of serious issues, and they are handled thoughtfully, but the book as a whole felt a bit scattered and just had a very difficult time keeping my attention. I ended up taking almost 2 months to read the book. That said, I really appreciated the perspective and I felt like I learned a lot about a different culture and life through Zarin's story. There is a lot of complexity to this story, and I really liked that Zarin was not who you might have expected. I'd definitely pick up a future book by Bhathena, whose second novel, The Beauty of the Moment, releases in 2019.