Customer Reviews

Salaam Brick Lane: A Year in the New East End

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
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Mr. Hall's work on London's East End is beautifully written and truly makes you feel as if you are a voyeur into a world that few of us have ever experienced. The author shows a genuine sympathy for his neighbors on Brick Lane in the East End and weaves their stories into the broader tapestry of the neighborhood's history as well as that of England as a whole. Without being preachy or condescending, you feel like you know and understand the characters that Mr. Hall met in his time there; the landlord running a sweatshop in his basement, the Indian "auntie" interviewing him on behalf of his future wife's mother, and the list goes on. This is what makes the book such a pleasure and it goes so quickly that in they end you wish Mr. Hall had spent even more time on Brick Lane.

When confined to observation and its presentation, good journalists tend to make good writers. Hall is one such journalist/writer. His clear and precise style comes very handy when reading about a complex and intricate world of London East End.

His own discovery of East End is told through the lives of people he meets and gets to talk. It's not a distant and cold narrative, though. On the contrary, he is directly involved in the intricate fabric of immigrant society through his American-born Indian fiancee. Yet he manages to limit the account of his personal story to the amount that relates to people he observes.

Overall "Salaam Brick Lane" is an honest and clear account of a short slice through East End.

Having read Hall's Vish Puri mysteries, I thought I'd try another of his books. This is a tale of movement, mental, physical and emotional. Finding himself in less than ideal financial circumstances, he moves into what is basically considered a slum where he learns that people, no matter what their manner of speaking or appearance may be, are all worthy of consideration, if not admiration. He realizes that he has alternatives while most of the people he comes in contact with do not. Their dogged determination to survive and flourish by whatever means comes to hand is constantly seen everywhere around him. A darker side of the human character also exposes itself in the prejudices inherent and rife in the lowest to highest "classes" of peoples. How can one judge the height of their relative status without pointing out those less worthy?
This man writes with such spot-on ethnicity that you can hear the accents, smell the odors, taste the foods and become immersed in the environs and feel like a neighbor yourself. I loved it.

I enjoyed reading this book except that I am not from England and found the "Englishisms" to be a little overwhelming. But, aside from that I found the historical information very good reading and very profound in some areas.
Compared to Monica Ali's Brick Lane this is a larger scope of the area but in reading both books I found that one does complement the other because the characters in Brick Lane never get to see much or learn much from the area.

I ordered "Salaam Brick Lane" after reading and reviewing Tarquin Hall's new detective novel, "The Case of the Missing Servant". In that book, set in today's Delhi (both old and New), Hall makes modern day India - both high and low - come alive, with his wonderful characters and descriptions of Indian society.

"Salaam" is non-fiction and set in early 2000's London. Hall has returned home to London, after spending much of his life as a wandering journo in India and other East Asia countries. Unable to afford a flat in a more affluent area of London, Hall rents a flat (though more like a pit) in Brick Lane in the East End of London. This area has been the home of many ethnic groups who've emigrated to London as a sort of "first stop" on their way "up" in British society. As each group has abandoned the area, other, poorer, emigrants have taken their place. The East End (right next to the City and near the Isle of Dogs) was heavily bombed during WW2.

Today the area is largely populated by Bengali Muslims (from a certain area in Bengladesh), Indian Hindus, and a scattering of Somalis, Albanians, and other groups from the old Yugoslavia. Rare are the old English "cockneys", who lived in the area until the '70's. What is astounding is the way the Muslims and Hindus seem to get along in the tight confines of the East End.

Hall's year in the East End is written in a non-sensational way. He finds friends among all the ethnic groups and seems totally accepted as a fellow "East Ender". Though the area is fairly poor, most everybody eakes out a living, some in a more "honest" fashion than others. (Lots of things "falling off the backs of trucks" in local stores.) Hall and his girlfriend (now wife) learn a lot in their year in Brick Lane and he explains it all beautifully in his book.

I'm now waiting for his third (actually his first) book to arrive. It's about a savage elephant in India. Looking forward to it.

Interesting memoir about a year the author (a native Briton) spent in London's immigrant-heavy East End, while he struggled to make it as a writer. Lots of good stories, and perspective, on the backgrounds of the various cultures and people living in the area, and also on how London has changed during the last 20 years.

I'd become a fan of Tarquin Hall's mysteries (sadly, there are currently only two out) and wanted to read more works by him. I bought this book and really enjoyed it. Tarquin Hall has an eye for details and writes evocative descriptions. This book is set in London's East End, and while he is a white Britisher living in a somewhat racist community comprising mainly Bengalis, he's never condescending or judgmental in his observations.

Actually, I found his writing style somewhat reminiscent of James Herriot (Alf Wight), one of my all-time favorite authors. Made this book even more enjoyable.

I highly recommend this book!