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sakisreads's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
tense
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? No
3.5
My friend had absolutely raved about ‘Love Marriage’ and so I thought to try Monica Ali’s original ‘Brick Lane’ first to see what her writing was all about.
Initially, I was disappointed as I thought the events dragged in the first half of the book. Nazneen was getting nowhere and I couldn’t come to terms with her meeting Karim.
However, once things started to pick up the pace and she started having her affair, I was far more excited 😂 I love an illicit storyline, especially when it affects people’s perspectives of self.I’d like to think that Nazneen would’ve come to terms with herself and her identity without Karim, but he certainly felt like a catalyst 😳
I also ADORED Nazneen’s ‘no’ towards Mrs. Islam at the end. I WHOOPED 😂
Shahana and Bibi also felt like true teens and I loved how their anxiety and humanness was included in the storyline.
I’d give it 4 stars if it had started with a faster pace, but this is still a stunning story. I would recommend it to challenge perceptions of both the immigrant experience and motherhood 👏🏼 Thank you ✨
Initially, I was disappointed as I thought the events dragged in the first half of the book. Nazneen was getting nowhere and I couldn’t come to terms with her meeting Karim.
However, once things started to pick up the pace and she started having her affair, I was far more excited 😂 I love an illicit storyline, especially when it affects people’s perspectives of self.
Shahana and Bibi also felt like true teens and I loved how their anxiety and humanness was included in the storyline.
I’d give it 4 stars if it had started with a faster pace, but this is still a stunning story. I would recommend it to challenge perceptions of both the immigrant experience and motherhood 👏🏼 Thank you ✨
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse and Islamophobia
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, and Classism
nolanlucy's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Beautiful descriptions, but I found it hard to read because I felt like not much happened, even the ending felt anticlimactic, aligning with the lack of closure throughout the book. Somehow the stakes never felt very high, and the fact that a lot was left unsaid made it hard for me to understand how people actually felt. Maybe this is reflective of life. I enjoyed the stories of home and childhood but the fact they were all tinged with sadness or something akin to sadness made it feel directionless. This coupled with the complex, close but simultaneously disconnected relationships felt like there was no hope, no grounding. Maybe this was the point, I'm not sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Islamophobia, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Drug abuse
sophiemundy13's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Not my normal sort of book, but an interesting insight into British-Bengali culture
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Drug abuse, Racism, and Violence
Minor: Suicide
_jchinasa's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Drug abuse
Minor: Suicide and Violence
sashagalkina's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Well, this was a very slow read for me. Not a lot happens, yet everything happens. The writing is intricate, descriptive and human observation is superb. I found that the book, much like real world, overflowed with issues, social, political, sexual... That's probably was why it took me so long to get through. It deals with everything. Pick an issue, this book at least mentions it. Cultural differences? Yep. Immigration? Yep. Parenting problems? Yep. Politics? Yep. Religion? Yep. Loss? Yep. It's got it all and more. Overall, it's good. The characters are vivid, writing's great, but if books were like people my relationship with it wouldn't go further than acquaintances.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Islamophobia, and Grief
Minor: Drug abuse, Suicide, and Trafficking
ella_1203's review against another edition
challenging
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Drug abuse, and Violence
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