Brick Lane
Monica Ali
Shortlisted for the Booker. Gill found this book informative. It
gave her an insight into the lives of Bangladeshis living in
England. The story centers on a young Bangladeshi woman who comes
over to England for an arranged marriage and then leads a very
sheltered life in the East End. The book depicts the Bangladeshi
community as having a sense of not belonging, not knowing where
they belong. Doreen found the book depressing and grim -
"everyone in the book is so unhappy all the time".
Gill 19/10/03
Booker nominated first novel about the Bangladeshi community in
East London with comparisons made to the life endured by the
sister of the main protagonist back in Bangla Desh. It's quite a
sobering, even depressing read with no one having a very good
time and some people having a very bad time indeed. Trapped in
unsympathetic surroundings and a mostly loveless marriage, the
main character shocks even herself by embarking on an affair with
a local political activist and getting interested in the causes
that he espouses.
Andrew 23/11/03
Bob thought this was extremely tedious and nearly gave up. It
seemed very repetitious - perhaps 200 pages too long. However, it
had some good things in it. The characters' reactions to
oppression were particularly notable.
Bob 24/10/04
The frames have
gone all funny - click to make it good.