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annemariewhelehan's review
adventurous
dark
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
May is read Africa month, so I was happy to jump onto @solennsbooknook buddy read just for the title.
It tells the story of Asians in Uganda, which were expelled by Amin in the early 70s. Many emigrated to the UK. The story is told in dual timeline, both in Uganda and UK. Initially it is not easy to see how the stories link together, but it does come together in the end.
I enjoyed the story, the way it was told, and the knowledge it imparted about this part of history.
It tells the story of Asians in Uganda, which were expelled by Amin in the early 70s. Many emigrated to the UK. The story is told in dual timeline, both in Uganda and UK. Initially it is not easy to see how the stories link together, but it does come together in the end.
I enjoyed the story, the way it was told, and the knowledge it imparted about this part of history.
sophie_birch180994's review
2.0
Upon reflection I had to lower the rating to 2.5 stars because the whole second half is a mess.
lindyloureads's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
4.5
naho's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
falkeandthebooks's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
DNF at 50%: I will be continuing this at another time because it's very good but I'm not in the mood/right mindset to read this now.
celtic67's review
4.0
This a debut novel and what a debut it was! A novel set in two time lines. Modern day London sees Sameer a young lawyer looking forward to a new stage in his career.
1960's Uganda sees Hassam adjusting to life where every thing he has built up is crumbling around him.
This is a novel of family dynamics, racism and politics. Hassam sees himself loosing his livelihood and being discriminated by other persons of colour, but he is not without his own prejudices.
Sameer finds his career clashes with his family ambitions of taking over the business. He and Hassam find themselves in conflict with the world around. A book I recommend and thanks to Lovereading for the ARC.
1960's Uganda sees Hassam adjusting to life where every thing he has built up is crumbling around him.
This is a novel of family dynamics, racism and politics. Hassam sees himself loosing his livelihood and being discriminated by other persons of colour, but he is not without his own prejudices.
Sameer finds his career clashes with his family ambitions of taking over the business. He and Hassam find themselves in conflict with the world around. A book I recommend and thanks to Lovereading for the ARC.
archytas's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
This coming of age story is compelling both in how sharply Zayyan draws her characters, and in how densely she weaves their experiences of nationality, race, religion and migration. At the centre of our tale is Sameer, a driven and ambitious lawyer caught between the high-flying world of corporate takeovers and his family's expectations that he will use his hard-won education to apprentice in the family business as his father and uncles did before him.
From the outset, this felt slightly different to many caught-between-different-worlds narratives in that, frankly, neither of those worlds seem particularly appealing. At work, Sameer is bullied and subtly excluded for being a bit too Muslim. With his family, Sameer is expected to surrender most of his life choices, income and vision. In both worlds, the agency he craves seems to be slipping further away from him.
While the narrative takes Sameer to better options, Zayyan resists romanticising or deproblemicising any of his choices. In Uganda, Sameer finds agency but also, as he grapples with joining a relatively privileged class, struggles to hold on to his sense of cultural identity. Punctuating this journey is unsent letters from his grandfather, used as a diary, which document the history of Uganda as well as the complexity of experiences of Indo-Africans.
I'm not quite sure that Zayyan stuck the landing, with an ending that felt a bit out of tune, but not in a way which changed my overall enjoyment of the book.
In the end, perhaps the book's greatest strength is its refusal to let any character be simply an avatar however, making these lives, like all, a mix of our choices, and personal triumphs and hurts, and sweeping global forces that sometimes we only understand too late.
From the outset, this felt slightly different to many caught-between-different-worlds narratives in that, frankly, neither of those worlds seem particularly appealing. At work, Sameer is bullied and subtly excluded for being a bit too Muslim. With his family, Sameer is expected to surrender most of his life choices, income and vision. In both worlds, the agency he craves seems to be slipping further away from him.
While the narrative takes Sameer to better options, Zayyan resists romanticising or deproblemicising any of his choices. In Uganda, Sameer finds agency but also, as he grapples with joining a relatively privileged class, struggles to hold on to his sense of cultural identity. Punctuating this journey is unsent letters from his grandfather, used as a diary, which document the history of Uganda as well as the complexity of experiences of Indo-Africans.
I'm not quite sure that Zayyan stuck the landing, with an ending that felt a bit out of tune, but not in a way which changed my overall enjoyment of the book.
In the end, perhaps the book's greatest strength is its refusal to let any character be simply an avatar however, making these lives, like all, a mix of our choices, and personal triumphs and hurts, and sweeping global forces that sometimes we only understand too late.
shaclarke's review
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
viktoriakffnk's review
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0