READ: Of three women and a boy

2009/10/10

SU AZIZ

This week, SU AZIZ mixes books that consist of complicated modern women, a highly intellectual woman, a remarkably strong woman and one confused boy.

The Wish Maker by Ali Sethi 420 pages/Riverhead Books (paperback) LET’S begin with the boy. This one grew up fatherless in a household of opinionated, strong women in modern Pakistan.

As if sex-biased family ties is not entertaining enough, Sethi has woven tales of inextinguishable friendship and love (of course!) against the backdrop of modern Pakistan.

The boy and a female cousin grew up watching American television, miming dialogue from Bollywood movies, attending dangerous protests and forming veiled friendships.

His crusading political journalist mother and iron-willed grandmother made anything else impossible.

When adolescence approached, the cousins’ fates split. She faced severe consequences brought on by her unconventional behaviour while he was sent out to discover the world.

Years later, he was forced to pull up the wool which covered his eyes and “confront the true nature of happiness, selfhood, and commitment to those he loves most.” Swinging back and forth from past to present, Sethi chronicled world-changing events with a pinch of seriousness, a dollop of humour and compassion.

This one’s bound to remind you that there are bonds so strong, they can weather “convention, time, and history”.

Available in all good bookstores.

Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner 362 pages/Simon & Schuster (paperback) WEINER’s name may be familiar to chick lit and chick flick fans. Ever read or watched In Her Shoes? Yes, the very one. This one’s from the same author. And yes, it’s rather “women-friendly”, light and entertaining.

The story’s about two best friends who are as different as night and day.

The Wish Maker

Predictably, they were inseparable through school. Naturally, a bad incident turns best friends into bitter enemies.

Then, an unexpected incident brings them back together.

The thing is, can the quiet, (seemingly) exploited one, forgive the brash, adventurous one? And can they deal with the unexpected incident? Even if they could, would they be able to overcome the years of separation, of being wronged and be friends again? Do you think they can? Do you think best friends can overcome deep chasms in their relationship, no matter how wide it is? Go on then, pick up the book. Even if you might not agree with some of the plots and at times rather two-dimensional characters, it’s still a good beach read.

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín 252 pages/Viking This one’s a sail through calm waters. Tóibín’s soothing style unfolds a touching tale of “departure and return”.

On a more dramatic note, it’s also of love and loss and personal freedom versus filial duty.

There are hints of naivety that made the tale charming.

It’s all about an Irish immigrant working and living in 1950s Brooklyn.

Back home, she left an ageing mother and a rather charismatic sister behind.

In the American department store where she works, she finds love.

Slowly, she realises that her life is taking shape in Brooklyn. Just as she’s enjoying her new life, a devastating news from Ireland threatens to bring her back to square one.

Question is, will she retreat to a life of filial piety? Or will she grab the opportunity to return to her promising new life in Brooklyn? Despite the gripping questions, the book is rather mellow. So, don’t expect a riveting read.

However, if you are looking for a relaxing one with a touch of mild drama, pick this one up from any good bookstores near you.

Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell 500 pages/Sphere (paperback) IF I could be a human superhero, I’d want to be Cornwell’s long-time heroine of her Kay Scarpetta series.

Alas, I am not a follower of the series. As a stand alone, this one is not too alienating.

Basically, Scarpetta (a looker, stylish, smart, a great cook, and somewhat complicated) is a chief medical examiner.

In this one, she leaves her private forensic pathology practice in South Carolina to accept an assignment in New York.

There, she’s asked to examine an injured man in a psychiatric prison ward.

The patient, who had asked to be examined by her, began to talk as soon as she starts examining him.

It turns out to be one of the most bizarre tales she has ever heard.

Apparently, his injuries weren’t caused during the murder of his girlfriend which he claims he didn’t commit but was witness to.

As you turn the pages, a horrifying truth emerges — is it a person or a government that’s commiting these crimes? If you want the answer to that, pick up the book! It’s available at all good bookstores. If this one’s a riveting read for you, the follow up, due out later this year, is called The Scarpetta Factor.