A friendship between two girls, Zahra and Maryam, survives forty years and relocates from the tense pre-Bhutto era in Karachi to metropolitan London. Vivid imagery sets the scene, effectively conveying the atmosphere and tensions apparent in both countries.
Zahra’s parents, a headteacher and a famous cricket commentator, have brought up their daughter very differently to Maryam’s family, wealthy leather company owners headed by her controlling grandfather. While Zahra has academic aspirations, Maryam is being groomed to take over the family business. One single event in Karachi shapes the future of the girls and casts a long shadow over their lives.
The characters are beautifully drawn with warmth and depth. Their bond grows over the years in spite of their differences, moral and political, and their flaws and strengths are visible, if not acknowledged. Amongst the politics and ambition, there is fury, shame and compassion as well as the vulnerability their friendship protects them from.
Feeling like part of their extended family, I had to keep reading, my loyalties wavering between the two girls.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it.
Zahra’s parents, a headteacher and a famous cricket commentator, have brought up their daughter very differently to Maryam’s family, wealthy leather company owners headed by her controlling grandfather. While Zahra has academic aspirations, Maryam is being groomed to take over the family business. One single event in Karachi shapes the future of the girls and casts a long shadow over their lives.
The characters are beautifully drawn with warmth and depth. Their bond grows over the years in spite of their differences, moral and political, and their flaws and strengths are visible, if not acknowledged. Amongst the politics and ambition, there is fury, shame and compassion as well as the vulnerability their friendship protects them from.
Feeling like part of their extended family, I had to keep reading, my loyalties wavering between the two girls.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it.