Exit West by Moshin Hamid: I've been a fan of Moshin Hamid since I read
The Reluctant Fundamentalist a few years back. And then when
Exit West showed up on P
resident Obama's Best of 2017 list, I had to run out and read it. This book takes place in an unidentified county on the brink of civil war. An independent Nadia - who is estranged from her family because of her unorthodox decision to live on her own - enters into a relationship with Saeed, a more traditional man who lives with his parents. As the violence in their town increases, the two agree to escape - though strange doors that have appeared through the city. The doors take people to new countries - where they are faced with possibilities, but also the fear inherent in leaving behind the familiar. Nadia and Saeed find themselves navigating new situations and lives - while also working through their relatively young relationship. As usual, Hamid's writing is beautiful - this is a book I'd recommend trying to read in long sittings to become immersed in the escapist fantasy/fears.
Pashmina by Nidhi Chanani: I don't tend to read many graphic novels - but my son is very into them, so I have slowly been checking a few out. I read the
Persepolis series awhile back, and this one appealed to me in a similar way.
Pashmina is the story of Priyanika - a fairly typical American child growing up with a single parent. Her mother is from India, and as Priyanka finds herself more and more interested in visiting India, her mother seems determined to prevent Priyanka from obtaining answers to any of her questions. One day, Priyanka discovers a pashmina in her mother's closet that seems to transport her to India. She finds herself increasingly obsessed with wearing the pashmina and finding out the answers to all of her burning questions about her past. This is a wonderful story about relationships between mothers and daughters, the secrets we keep, and all of our needs to learn about the past in order to figure out who we are.
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