March 7, 2022
Booker-nominated Ali (Brick Lane) returns with the complex yet breezy account of a 26-year-old London medical student who questions whether she really wants to be a doctor or if she’s merely carrying out her father’s wishes. Yasmin Ghorami’s family is Indian and Muslim, and she is engaged to white upper-class colleague Joe Sangster, whose mother, Harriet, is a famous feminist activist. As wedding planning commences with Harriet and Yasmin’s mother, Anisah, at the helm, tensions rise between the couple, but it turns out religious and cultural differences are the least of the roadblocks. The delicate web of familial relationships and drama is held up by a vibrant supporting cast: Yasmin’s underachieving brother and his girlfriend’s unplanned pregnancy; Anisah’s midlife awakening to her own power, and Yasmin’s father’s increasing alcohol use and isolation as he clings to his conservative religious beliefs. Everything leads toward the reveal of a dark secret held by the Ghoramis that threatens to undermine the engagement. The characters’ brisk discussions on politics, culture, and race skate over ideological divides, the substance of which emerges in dramatic irony and creates a textured portrayal of an immigrant family. This is sure to please Ali’s fans and win some new ones.
September 1, 2022
Dr. Yasmin Ghorami has perfectly reasonable worries as a bride-to-be. Will her devoutly Muslim mother embarrass her in front of fianc� Joe's boundary-pushing feminist mother? At least her engagement to a doctor meets her father's inflexible approval, but do her worries reflect the realities of people she may not know as well as she thinks? Ayesha Dharkar's crisp, musical narration develops organically with Yasmin as she moves from pre-wedding jitters toward devastating revelations of both self and family. A story rife with serious themes is leavened by Ali's (Brick Lane) well-rounded characters and the conviction that with care and communication everyone is capable of growth. Dharkar excels across a spectrum of class, culture, and generational divides, completely immersing listeners in the inner lives and outward relationships of the characters. Equally engrossing is the way that Ali fits interpersonal friction into her authentic portrayal of first- and second-generation immigrant experiences in modern Britain. Critique of performative white liberalism and of Islamophobia in both India and the UK enhance this satisfying listen. VERDICT Narrator and text are perfectly matched in this thought-provoking literary romance.--Lauren Kage
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