The Pakistani Bride: A Novel [Paperback]

Bapsi Sidhwa (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 22, 2008

As a youth, Qasim leaves his tribal village in the remote Himalayas for the plains. Caught up in the strife surrounding the creation of Pakistan, he takes an orphaned girl for his daughter and brings her to the bustling, decadent city of Lahore. Amid the pungent bazaars and crowded streets, Qasim makes his fortune and a home for the two of them. As the years pass, Qasim grows nostalgic about his life in the mountains while his hopelessly romantic teenage daughter, Zaitoon, imagines Qasim's homeland as a region of tall, kindly men who roam the Himalayas like gods. Impulsively, Qasim promises his daughter in marriage to a tribesman, but Zaitoon's fantasy soon becomes a grim reality of unquestioning obedience and unending labor. Bapsi Sidhwa’s acclaimed first novel is a robust, richly plotted story of colliding worlds straddled by a spirited girl for whom escape may not be an option.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'...at a breathless pace [Sidhwa] weaves her exotic cliffhanger from passion, power, lust, sensuality, cruelty and murder.' -- Financial Times

'Bapsi Sidhwa is a powerful and dramatic novelist who knows how to flesh out a story.' -- London Times

'Sidhwa writes with the same vivacity that made the author's first novel, 'The Crow Eaters' so memorable.' -- Telegraph --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Milkweed Editions (January 22, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1571310630
• ISBN-13: 978-1571310637
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #189,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fiction with just enough amount of history!, July 14, 2008

By 

The One Eyed Turtle "Turtle reads" (East Windsor, New Jersey United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Pakistani Bride: A Novel (Paperback)

Bapsi Sidhwa is an extraordinary writer. She seems to capture the essence of culture and tradition within Pakistan.
The characters are well formed and the author follows this journey quite well with a mesh of "why" for the unanswered cultural questions.
This is a part of the world that evokes great ambivalence for me the reader, because I want to criticize the abuse of women and can't seem to understand why they don't run away. Sidhwa anticipates this feeling and tries to resolve it in her novel.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great reading, February 20, 2012

By 

Hei MuDan (Birmingham, AL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pakistani Bride: A Novel (Paperback)

This was a wonderful book. it made me laugh anc made me cry. The author has the ability to make feel as though you are there. It also makes you aware that in some parts of the world women are still treated very poorly. This book is written as fiction but as someone who has traveled I see much truth here.

5.0 out of 5 stars fabulous book!, October 26, 2011

By 

Elizabeth (Washington DC) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Pakistani Bride: A Novel (Paperback)

This is one of the best books I have read in years. It is a fascinating story as well as a page turner. I couldn't put it down.