I have decided to play devil’s advocate and find something good in all books that would otherwise let us know there are way to many people out there who think they can write (even if just for argument’s sake.)
Brick Lane, I have to admit that when first introduced to the book (in the form of the gracious googlebooks blurb and reviews), it sounded like a fantastic read! Monica Ali presents a great plot, a love affair, and well, an introduction to a culture other than our own (why not say this is what caught my attention.)
I like books that delve into the roots of different cultures, and give us some insight in all the small things that most of us living in the western hemisphere take for granted. I believe Ali does a good job at getting right down to the nitty-gritty of things, I enjoyed the detailed and precise descriptions of things in a few of the chapters; such us Nazneen’s description of her husband – it’s not very often that one gets a description of a person’s stomach being so big that it could rest on the counter, or that the roundness of a face made someone look like a toad – for that I commend her.
Ali tried to give us a crude and real image of what the life of a woman married off in a Muslim culture might be like; and I found myself feeling sorry, concerned and angry (all at the same time) that many women have to go through the many hardships Nazneen had to go through.
I think Ali did a fantastic job in describing the culture shock most immigrants go through when they move to a country other than their own, and to all that add another language, another society and well the great battle between trying to stay true to themselves (and roots), and dealing with trying to adapt to a new life (even more so difficult once they have children.)
For all the good details the book had and the fact that most immigrants coming from traditionalist societies would more than likely be able to relate to the main character and the theme of the book, I’m going to give this book a 3Vs (out of 5).
-Lolita Vaage
