Anam, Tahmima "The Good Muslim"

Anam, Tahmima "The Good Muslim" - 2011

Brothers and sisters can always have different points of view, on politics, on religion, on education, on anything.

In this case, a brother and a sister fight for their country Bangladesh. When the civil war is over, they go their own ways, they make completely different choices. The brother, Sohail, turns very religious and becomes a "good Muslim", the sister, Maya, becomes  a doctor and causes all sorts of trouble. They don't see each other for years until the brother's wife dies. Maya wants to take care of her nephew but the different views of the two clash.

Even though the author describes the situation between the two well, in my opinion, everything is just a little too superficial, doesn't go deep enough, a lot of hints and short descriptions but nothing that really sticks out and clarifies the point of view. Too "easy" in my opinion but if you like to read chick lit, you might enjoy it. There is only a small glimpse into the culture, and not much about the war at all.

Again, my verdict, too superficial, not detailed enough.

I only learned later that this is the second book in a series, the book cover says nothing about it. So, if you want to read this, you might want to start with "A Golden Age", although I don't think I will read it because I don't expect it to be any different from this one.

From the back cover:

"Maya Haque - outspoken, passionate, headstrong - has been estranged from her brother Sohail for almost a decade. When she returns home to Dhaka hoping for a reconciliation, she discovers he has transformed beyond recognition. Can the two, both scarred by war, come together again? And what of Sohail's young son, Zaid, caught between worlds but desperate to belong?"