{"product_id":"asghar-and-zahra-9781473697225","title":"Asghar and Zahra","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLONGLISTED FOR THE DESMOND ELLIOTT PRIZE\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eChildhood friends Asghar and Zahra were born into the same British Muslim community in west London. But they grow up into very different people. Asghar is a shy boy nervous of stepping outside his family''s comfort zone, while Zahra is an ambitious woman who has just finished her degree at Cambridge.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe novel opens on their wedding day as friends and family wonder what could possibly have brought this odd couple together. After a comically disastrous honeymoon, painful secrets from the past throw the relationship further off-balance. And then there''s the sinister preacher taking a keen interest in them . . . \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA funny, sympathetic and very human novel about the first year of a marriage, and the difficulties of reconciling the sometimes conflicting demands of family, religion and society, \u003ci\u003eAsghar and Zahra\u003c\/i\u003e is the debut of a striking new talent.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA wonderful achievement; an invigorating reminder of the power fiction has to challenge lazy stereotypes, and stretch the reader's heart\u003c\/b\u003e * Guardian *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eIan McEwan is a tempting comparison (the book has been described as \u003ci\u003eOn Chesil Beach\u003c\/i\u003e for British Muslims) - but this is a funnier account with deeper roots\u003c\/b\u003e * Daily Telegraph *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA sparkling debut . . . a novel of charm and compassion\u003c\/b\u003e * New Statesman *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA tragicomic account of a doomed marriage . . . Rahim's wit propels the novel. \u003ci\u003eAsghar and Zahra\u003c\/i\u003e sends up everything from piety to quintessential 'Englishness' and casual Islamophobia\u003c\/b\u003e * Literary Review *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA fascinating read\u003c\/b\u003e * Mail on Sunday *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFunny and wise, and beautifully written\u003c\/b\u003e -- Colm Tóibín * New Statesman, Books of the Year *","brand":"John Murray Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49408809861463,"sku":"9781473697225","price":14.24,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781473697225.jpg?v=1730504290","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/asghar-and-zahra-9781473697225","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}