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50books_poc2009-04-19 03:22 pm
anitabuchan.livejournal.com) wrote in 50books_poc2009-04-19 03:22 pm
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Meera Syal, Randa Abdel-Fattah and Nisha Minhas
5. Life isn't all Ha Ha Hee Hee by Meera Syal
I'm a big fan of Meera Syal, so I pretty much knew I would like this. Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee revolves around three thirty-something British Indian women, Tania, Sunita and Chila. They're about as different as they can be, but all are strong, well-rounded characters. I liked Sunita and Chila very much. Tania, I started off liking most, which then turned to dislike, then pity, before going back to like.
I love Syal's descriptions, which made it easy to imagine this vivid blend of British and Indian culture. It didn't make me laugh out loud, but it was funny - not in a cracking jokes way, just in the observations made about various characters. I also liked the ending very much. I don't want to ruin it, but I was left feeling happy with how the three characters had changed throughout the book.
6. Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Amal has just decided to start wearing the hijab full time. She goes to a posh school and knows that most of the people there will react badly. I didn't like this book as much as I liked her second book (10 Things I Hate About Me), but I still mostly enjoyed it. I liked the characters, I liked the multicultural world Amal lived in. But it wasn't a 'can't put it down' book. I sometimes wondered where the plot was going, or why I was still reading - for a section of the book there was very little suspense. Then something happened that caught my interest again. I think this is a good book in need of a better editor - Abdel-Fattah's a good writer, but this could have been improved.
7. Bindis and Brides by Nisha Minhas
Zarleena, who has recently escaped from an abusive marriage, bumps into a man (Joel) at the supermarket, and agrees to help him cook an Indian meal for his one night stand. Except the reason she does so is that he tells her it's for his fiancee, in order to prove his love. Various misunderstandings ensue, Joel proves himself a good guy after all, they all live HEA (except the abusive ex-husband, of course). I loved the writing style, and found it sometimes very funny. But I also had some serious issues. The rape scene, for example. Probably realistic, but I hate rape being used as a plot device (in this case, being used to illustrate how evil the ex-husband was.) I just don't think it was necessary. I then didn't like the suggestion that Joel was capable of murdering the ex-husband by burying him alive. In the end it was revealed he didn't, but until I discovered that I seriously struggled with the idea of a romantic hero who'd killed someone by burying them alive! I also sometimes felt a little weird about the way she discussed sex. I think there was a reference to Joel's dates giving him a blowjob as 'dessert'.Still, I'm curious enough to want to read a few more of her books.
I'm a big fan of Meera Syal, so I pretty much knew I would like this. Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee revolves around three thirty-something British Indian women, Tania, Sunita and Chila. They're about as different as they can be, but all are strong, well-rounded characters. I liked Sunita and Chila very much. Tania, I started off liking most, which then turned to dislike, then pity, before going back to like.
I love Syal's descriptions, which made it easy to imagine this vivid blend of British and Indian culture. It didn't make me laugh out loud, but it was funny - not in a cracking jokes way, just in the observations made about various characters. I also liked the ending very much. I don't want to ruin it, but I was left feeling happy with how the three characters had changed throughout the book.
6. Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Amal has just decided to start wearing the hijab full time. She goes to a posh school and knows that most of the people there will react badly. I didn't like this book as much as I liked her second book (10 Things I Hate About Me), but I still mostly enjoyed it. I liked the characters, I liked the multicultural world Amal lived in. But it wasn't a 'can't put it down' book. I sometimes wondered where the plot was going, or why I was still reading - for a section of the book there was very little suspense. Then something happened that caught my interest again. I think this is a good book in need of a better editor - Abdel-Fattah's a good writer, but this could have been improved.
7. Bindis and Brides by Nisha Minhas
Zarleena, who has recently escaped from an abusive marriage, bumps into a man (Joel) at the supermarket, and agrees to help him cook an Indian meal for his one night stand. Except the reason she does so is that he tells her it's for his fiancee, in order to prove his love. Various misunderstandings ensue, Joel proves himself a good guy after all, they all live HEA (except the abusive ex-husband, of course). I loved the writing style, and found it sometimes very funny. But I also had some serious issues. The rape scene, for example. Probably realistic, but I hate rape being used as a plot device (in this case, being used to illustrate how evil the ex-husband was.) I just don't think it was necessary. I then didn't like the suggestion that Joel was capable of murdering the ex-husband by burying him alive. In the end it was revealed he didn't, but until I discovered that I seriously struggled with the idea of a romantic hero who'd killed someone by burying them alive! I also sometimes felt a little weird about the way she discussed sex. I think there was a reference to Joel's dates giving him a blowjob as 'dessert'.Still, I'm curious enough to want to read a few more of her books.
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