Arabian Jazz (Hardcover)

by Diana Abu-Jaber (Author) "WHEN MATUSSEM RAMOUD opened his eyes each morning, his wife would still not be there..." (more)
Key Phrases: Diana Abu-Jaber, Larry Fasco, Old Country (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
This promising if uneven first novel focuses on a Jordanian widower and his grown daughters as they try to make a home for themselves in upstate New York. Struggling to locate their place in American culture, Matussem, Melvina and Jemorah also cope with Fatima, Matussem's meddlesome sister, who is forever trying to marry off her nieces. Abu-Jaber successfully depicts the family's anomie, the discomfort they feel both in their ancestral land and in the States. On the other hand, she shows just how Americanized they have become--Matussem moonlights as a jazz drummer ("The Big Band Sound of Mat Ramoud and the Ramoudettes"), the daughters congregate with co-workers at the bar Won Ton a Go-Go. The work falters, however, in unconvincing descriptions of Jem's semi-romantic involvements with a gas-station attendant and a big-talking mathematician/pool hustler. And at times the larger-than-life portrayal of Jordanian relatives clinging to ethnic customs borders on caricature. But Abu-Jaber's sobering, shocking revelations of the hardships long buried as family secrets in the Old Country serve as proof of her narrative powers.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
You're an Arab-American writing about your community in your first novel. Should you go for a comic/satirical treatment? Do something more serious, emphasizing cultural displacement? Or broaden your canvas to include the white, nonethnic neighbors? Abu- Jaber has tried all three tacks and been overwhelmed in the process. The Ramoud family, father and two grown daughters, live in a small town in upstate New York and work at the same hospital in Syracuse. The father, Matussem, emigrated from Jordan as a young man and fell in love with and married Nora, an Irish-American who interpreted his new country for him. Since her death from typhus on a trip to Jordan, the gentle, passive Matussem has found a refuge in jazz (he's a drummer with his own group) and caring for his daughters. The younger, Melvina, is no problem; only 22, she's already Head Nurse. But Jemorah, the protagonist by default in this plotless novel, is another story. Stuck in a clerical job she hates, Jem's pushing 30 and still single, which is driving her Aunt Fatima nuts. (Fatima, whose life's ambition is to join the worthy Arab matrons on the Ladies' Pontifical Committee, is the main satirical target here.) None of Jem's three possible mates is very plausible. There's Gilbert Sesame, a fast-talking pool hustler who's here one minute, gone the next; Ricky Ellis, a local grease monkey with whom Jem makes love in the bushes; and cousin Nassir, fresh from Jordan, who warns Jem about her extended family, ``a cult organization.'' Eventually, after two crudely engineered encounters with bigots, she decides that postgraduate research into race prejudice is the answer. The other elements in this mishmash (visiting Jordanians on a credit-card rampage, poor whites tormenting themselves with coathangers and booze) only add to the confusion. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 374 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt P; 1st edition (June 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0151078629
• ISBN-13: 978-0151078622
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,539,859 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A joyful adventure in cultural diversity, July 4, 2003

By	Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Arabian Jazz: A Novel (Paperback)

This light-hearted and imaginative novel portrays a Jordanian family as they adjust to life in the United States. Jazz musician and widower Mattusem Ramoud has raised his two daughters alone since his wife's death, balancing their lives as Americans with their Jordanian hertiage. The extended family is like any other large, eccentric group of people, full of intensity and humor, loving each other unconditionally through whatever difficulties arise.

Jemorah and Melvina have reached marriageable age and their Aunt Fatima, Matussem's sister, is determined that this year, during "Family Function Season", at least Jemorah will find a husband before she is old enough to be disqualified as a spinster. The search is on and Fatima leaves no stone unturned, offering an assortment of odd relatives, second cousins and distant "uncles". But Jemora is in no hurry to make a choice that will alter the course of her life, determined to make a well-informed decision.

This intimate peek into one Arab-American family's experience, blends two generations of Ramouds, all of them quirky and colorful. Many are recent visitors from Jordan who speak in fractured English that renders them even more charming and eccentric, if that is possible, as Abu-Jaber holds her finger directly on the pulse of this remarkable family. Cousin Saiid enthuses, "I must be in heaven, man. You are our cousins, man? This is completely, like, my mind is psyching out."

Old Country fables abound, along with the foolish antics of the younger generation in this eclectic mix of characters. Each page is a delight, bursting with life and energy, family connections and intimate portraits of the bonds of love. Whatever Jemorah decides, she will always have a soft place to fall, her Jordanian-American family her greatest asset. Abu-Jaber has deftly penned the tale of a raucous family, enthusiastic about everything in their lives, music, the future and each other. The Ramoud's share their fascinating culture with the reader, reinforcing the belief of an America that offers infinite possibilities to those who embrace her opportunity and generosity, enriching this country with their accomplishments. Luan Gaines/2003

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars interesting, November 2, 2006

By	Thoughtful (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arabian Jazz: A Novel (Paperback)

Interesting but not super as her novel Crescent was. Crescent was really a wonderful novel that I have given as a gift to many friends. I was hoping to feel this way about Arabian Jazz.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Uneven, but when it's good it soars, July 22, 2003

By	Mishka M "mmmatlarge" (BEIRUT Lebanon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arabian Jazz: A Novel (Paperback)

Worth reading, though the first few pages (and some later) are extremely disappointing. Arabic names are mispronounced, the attempt at comedy is poor, and none of the characters are remotely sympathetic. As the book proceeds, we meet a very different kind of writing. Some of the passages in the book are exceptionally insightful and well written. For those passages it is well worth reading the book. I would rate the book between 1 and 5. It won't tell you much about Arab culture except in parody, but it portrays alienation and prejudice with candor and poignancy.