Product Description

Still in her teenage years, Nazneen finds herself in an arranged marriage with a disappointed man who is twenty years older. Away from the mud and heat of her Bangladeshi village, home is now a cramped flat in a high-rise block in London's East End. Nazneen knows not a word of English, and is forced to depend on her husband. But unlike him she is practical and wise, and befriends a fellow Asian girl Razia, who helps her understand the strange ways of her adopted new British home. Nazneen keeps in touch with her sister Hasina back in the village. But the rebellious Hasina has kicked against cultural tradition and run off in a 'love marriage' with the man of her dreams. When he suddenly turns violent, she is forced into the degrading job of garment girl in a cloth factory. Confined in her flat by tradition and family duty, Nazneen also sews furiously for a living, shut away with her buttons and linings - until the radical Karim steps unexpectedly into her life. On a background of racial conflict and tension, they embark on a love affair that forces Nazneen finally to take control of her fate. Strikingly imagined, gracious and funny, this novel is at once epic and intimate. Exploring the role of Fate in our lives - those who accept it; those who defy it - it traces the extraordinary transformation of an Asian girl, from cautious and shy to bold and dignified woman.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8142 in Books
• Published on: 2004-05-01
• Released on: 2004-04-22
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 496 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
With its gritty Tower Hamlets setting, this sharply observed contemporary novel about the life of an Asian immigrant girl deals cogently with issues of love, cultural difference and the human spirit. The pre-publicity hype about Brick Lane was precisely the kind to set alarm bells ringing (we've heard it so often before), but, for once, the excitement is fully justified: Monica Ali's debut novel demonstrates that there is a new voice in modern fiction to be reckoned with.

Nazneen is a teenager forced into an arranged marriage with a man considerably older than her--a man whose expectations of life are so low that misery seems to stretch ahead for her. Fearfully leaving the sultry oppression of her Bangladeshi village, Nazneen finds herself cloistered in a small flat in a high-rise block in the East End of London. Because she speaks no English, she is obliged to depend totally on her husband. But it becomes apparent that, of the two, she is the real survivor: more able to deal with the ways of the world, and a better judge of the vagaries of human behaviour. She makes friends with another Asian girl, Razia, who is the conduit to her understanding of the unsettling ways of her new homeland.

This is a novel of genuine insight, with the kind of characterisation that reminds the reader at every turn just what the novel form is capable of. Every character (Nazneen, her disappointed husband and her resourceful friend Razia) is drawn with the complexity that can really only be found in the novel these days. In some ways, the reader is given the same all-encompassing experience as in a Dickens novel: humour and tragedy rub shoulders in a narrative that inexorably grips the reader. Whether or not Monica Ali can follow up this achievement is a question for the future; it's enough to say right now that Brick Lane is an essential read for anyone interested in current British fiction. --Barry Forshaw

Sunday Times
'Written with a wisdom and skill that few authors attain in a lifetime'

Observer
'Brick Lane has everything: richly complex characters, a gripping story and it's funny too'

Customer Reviews

Difficult going
Couldnt wait to read it and unlike the book I'll be brief with my review. The characters are well thought out and excellently written. Some absorbing vivid touches but in a book that is ridiculously over-written, these deft moments are lost. Clearly Monical Ali can write prose very well, but her story telling style drove me potty. Unfortunately i didnt actually finish the book...half way through i was lost amongst all the words. Its sorely overwritten - and honestly i cannot understand the hype.

Some moving parts
I was so looking forward to reading this book but overall I was slightly disappointed.

The first half of the story which describes Nazneen's arrival in Britain as a young bride, her difficult life in London and the tragedy of losing her first child, was gripping. However I found the account of her affair with Karim and the repetitive descriptions of her daughters' struggles with their father went on for much longer than was necessary. I was pleasantly surprised though when the final section of the novel, where Nazneen and her husband reach an understanding about whether to return to Bangladesh or not, actually moved me to tears.

In summary, this is a good book with some moving parts, but not a great work of literature.

Should I keep reading?
Perhaps it is not a good idea to write a review only 200 (out of 500) pages into a book but here goes! I bought this book as I enjoy reading about different cultures, I enjoyed reading the Kite Runner and felt it gave me a real feel and understanding of the culture, it was a real page turner. However as other people have mentioned in their reviews Brick Lane is too long and wordy. It takes a long time to get anywhere and I'm wondering if I should just give up! I will persevere but it is not a book that I find difficult to put down. One of the problems for me is that few of the characters are particularly likeable. Nazeen should be likeable as she is not in the best situation (in an arranged marriage to a man she is not in love with, does not find attractive, finds irritating, and is controlling) but I feel that I want to shake her and tell her to speak up and try to improve her situation even in small ways. I'm disappointed by this book and I only hope it improves and lives up to all the quotes which praise it on the cover!