Product Description

As Rehana Haque awakes one March morning, she might be forgiven for feeling happy. Today she will throw a party for her son and daughter. In the garden of the house she has built, her roses are blooming; her children are almost grown-up; and beyond their doorstep, the city is buzzing with excitement after recent elections. Change is in the air. But none of the guests at Rehana’s party can foresee what will happen in the days and months that follow. For this is East Pakistan in 1971, a country on the brink of war. And this family’s life is about to change for ever.

Set against the backdrop of the Bangladesh War of Independence, A Golden Age is a story of passion and revolution, of hope, faith and unexpected heroism. In the chaos of this era, everyone – from student protesters to the country’s leaders, from rickshaw-wallahs to the army’s soldiers – must make choices. And as she struggles to keep her family safe, Rehana will find herself faced with a heartbreaking dilemma.

(20060201)

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #100575 in Books
• Published on: 2007-03-08
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

Martha Kearney, Harper's Bazaar
'Anam has her own distinctive voice . . . the authenticity shines
through Anam's beautiful, simple prose'

Review

'Anam achieves a delicacy and tenderness in conjuring the "threads of feeling" between people, a poetic precision of images: kites floating, huts sinking into the sea, "hungry, cracked earth". From the wreckage and destruction grows a voice of real eloquence'

(Anita Sethi, Independent 20060201)

'Anam has created for Bangladesh what Romesh Gunesekera managed for Sri Lanka: a ballad for perserverance . . . A Golden Age pays tribute, with sensitivity and restrained passion, to those who fought for one such arbour: a country to call home'

(Christian House, Independent on Sunday 20060201)

'Anam has her own distinctive voice . . . the authenticity shines through Anam’s beautiful, simple prose'

(Martha Kearney, Harper’s Bazaar )

'A stunning novel lays bare a mother's ordeal in the gulf between the two Pakistans'

(Observer )

'A Golden Age compellingly twists the personal and the historical, humming with handed down wisdom'

(Richard Godwin, Literary Review )

‘Vivid . . . momentous change and heartbreaking dilemmas’

(Publishing News )

'I’d put a few bob on Tahmima Anam – the extract from her novel-in-progress . . . is a vivid and intriguing slice of Bangladesh in 1959' (Written following the publication of Bedford Square, an anthology of new writing from Poet Laureate Andrew Motion's Creative Writing Programme at Royal Holloway, which included an extract from A Golden Age) 

(The Times )

'A Bengali Suite Francaise' (Jonathan Freedland, Newsnight Review )

'A steely tale of how one family deals with political unrest … Moving and beautifully written'

(Woman )

'Anam writes with a poetic lyricism that is both seductively romantic and explores troubling themes and violent truths with searing verisimilitude. An outstanding debut that glows with the golden hue of the title'

(Easy Living )

'The book touches on love, devotion and hope'

(Hephizibah Anderson, Vogue )

'A moving novel of deceptive simplicity and strength'

(Waterstone's Books Quarterly )

'Anam deftly balances the story of a nation against that of a family'

(Kamila Shamsie, Guardian )

'A Golden Age is an ambitious and powerful debut'

(Natasha Tripney, New Statesman )

'Anam’s novel flows easily, packing in a wealth of history as well as attention to detail that effortlessly make the image come alive . . . An assured, moving read'

(Sarah Birke, The Times )

'A real page-tuner, with a bravura, heart stopping ending'

 

(Sunday Telegraph/ Seven )

'This book is by turn moving, sad, but always absorbing'

(Good Book Guide )

'With A Golden Age, Anam is reminding Bangladeshis born, like her, after the war just what independence was all about and what the hopes and aspirations of their parents were before corruption ate them away'

(Tim Cribb, South China Morning Post )

'Anam has done a service to her country . . . No other writer has treated the subject with such clarity before, in English'

(TLS )

'I had tears in my eyes'

(Woman's Own )

Christian House, Independent on Sunday
'Anam has created for Bangladesh what Romesh Gunesekera managed
for Sri Lanka: a ballad for perserverance . . . A Golden Age pays tribute,
with sensitivity and restrained passion, to those who fought for one such
arbour: a country to call home'

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Customer Reviews

A brilliant debut
A Golden Age is a beautifully written book. The writing is simple and straightforward and creates a vivid picture of life in Bangladesh. It is the story of Rehana, a widow, and how she seeks to protect her children during the Bangladeshi War of Independence in 1971. Her student children want to become active in the war and Rehana reluctantly adds her support. But soon she is pulled more and more into supporting her adopted land of Bangladesh. The war is brutal and is graphically described and the narrative is gripping. The relationships between Rehana and her children, the Major and her neighbours are all very well drawn and perceptive.

Rehana is forced to make some hard choices - but having once lost her children in a custody battle she is determined to do anything within her capability to keep her son and daughter safe.

In the west the Pakistan-Bangladesh conflict is hardly remembered so this novel is a timely reminder of the recent history of the region. A brilliant debut - I do hope she has some more books in the pipeline!

A True Gem
This beautifully written book captures so much of the time and events. The characters strong and deep, it tells so much of the rich culture of the countries involved. The story does not dwindle and keeps a striking pace in such rich narrative.

I enjoyed every word of it page by page, the tragedies and triumphs, this really is a rare book that conveys so much.

Breathtaking Bangladeshi Debut
Like most Americans, my knowledge of Bangladesh has largely been limited to tragic news reports of devastating flooding every few years. However, unlike most Americans, I do at least know that Bangladesh was formerly part of present-day Pakistan, and fought a war for independence in 1971. That war is both the main catalyst in this debut novel, and the backdrop for the drama that Anam presents.

The story revolves around Rehana, a widow in her late 30s, whose main concern in life is her two teenage children, Maya and Soheil. In a prologue (the book opens with the stunning line "Dear Husband, today I lost our children."), we learn how Rehana's children were legally awarded to her brother-in-law following the death of their father, and of her struggle to regain custody. Although the separation only lasted a year and a half, it left a deep scar of guilt and remorse in Rehana that never healed. Every year she holds a party to celebrate their return, and it is at the 1971 edition of that party that we meet her children, neighbors, and friends for the first time. This party establishes the domestic tranquility that will soon be shattered by the coming war.

Rehana is apolitical herself, but soon finds herself dragged into the struggle for independence via the strong political views of her university-going children. What starts as something she can largely ignore becomes less so as atrocities on the part of the Pakistani army become more than just abstract bad news, and start to affect her friends and family. This is the kind of material that could easily become a weighty saga, or melodramatic soap opera, but Anam deftly avoids the pitfalls of both. As the civil war grows more intense, and her children become more involved and are more at danger, Rehana maintains a quiet determination to support them and do what she can for them. This theme of a mother's love is central to the story, and is carried out with pitch-perfect restraint. In fact, I suspect that it is a book that will be much more emotionally engaging for parents than non-parents. (I've definitely noticed that I respond to certain plots and themes much differently as a parent than I did prior to having a child -- and this is exactly the kind of story I don't think I would have connected with prior to having a child.)

The story unfolds in episodes over the course of nine months, with some leaps in time along the way. This is a nice technique that avoids the need to detail every single day along the way, and allows Anam to concentrate on what is meaningful. There are a number of compelling subplots, such as Soheil's love for a neighbor's daughter, Rehana's harboring and tending to a wounded rebel leader, and the children's blossoming into adults. In every case, she writes with compassion and heart for her characters without being cloying or sappy.

It's not a perfect book -- there are a few minor flaws, the foremost of which is a lack of glossary to the 50+ Urdu or Bengali terms used in the book. This isn't critical, but it is annoying. Another is the relative lack of sense of place throughout the book. The author could do a little more to create a truly vivid picture of Dhaka, as well as the Rehana's house -- neither really comes alive on the page. But these are relatively minor quibbles with a work as masterful and engaging as this. It's the first in a projected trilogy, and I can't wait for the next!