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Jennifer Zobair

Painted Hands: A Novel Hardcover – June 11, 2013

by Jennifer Zobair (Author)

55 customer reviews

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Muslim bad girl Zainab Mir has just landed a job working for a post-feminist, Republican Senate candidate. Her best friend Amra Abbas is about to make partner at a top Boston law firm. Together they've thwarted proposal-slinging aunties, cultural expectations, and the occasional bigot to succeed in their careers. What they didn't count on? Unlikely men and geopolitical firestorms.

When a handsome childhood friend reappears, Amra makes choices that Zainab considers so 1950s―choices that involve the perfect Banarasi silk dress and a four-bedroom house in the suburbs. After hiding her long work hours during their courtship, Amra struggles to balance her demanding job and her unexpectedly traditional new husband.

Zainab has her own problems. She generates controversy in the Muslim community with a suggestive magazine spread and friendship with a gay reporter. Her rising profile also inflames neocons like Chase Holland, the talk radio host who attacks her religion publicly but privately falls for her hard. When the political fallout from a terrorist attempt jeopardizes Zainab's job and protests surrounding a woman-led Muslim prayer service lead to violence, Amra and Zainab must decide what they're willing to risk for their principles, their friendship, and love.

Jennifer Zobair's Painted Hands is The Namesake meets Sex and the City, an engaging and provocative debut novel about friendship and the love lives of American Muslim women.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Taut and well written…this contemporary tale is reminiscent of Jumpa Lahiri's The Namesake, which focuses on the immigrant experience and assimilation. Ms. Zobair centers her story on the dilemmas of succeeding generations. She has integrated the quandaries of young career-oriented men and women and incorporated the human values of friendship, family, and love. Anyone who has grappled with personal traditions and found themselves in conflict with religion, family--and even with themselves--will relate to the issues that surface in this substantial and provocative work of fiction.” ―Diane Brandley, New York Journal of Books

“A debut with an original and refreshing premise–Jennifer Zobair's novel is about high-flying Bostonian women who struggle with their demanding careers, relationships, friendships and families, and who also happen to be Muslim. A positive portrait of modern Muslim women, prominent in their professions and at large within their communities, written with affection and detail.” ―Roopa Farooki, Orange Prize finalist and author of The Flying Man

“In Painted Hands, Jennifer Zobair lifts the veil on three American Muslim women, taking readers into a world that will challenge their assumptions. Her debut novel is an important addition to the canon of ethnic fiction, showcasing the difficulty of being both American and Muslim.” ―Anne Cherian, author of The Invitation and A Good Indian Wife

“An enlightening first novel, Jennifer Zobair's Painted Hands dismantles the myths and stereotypes about what it means to be Muslim in American society today. Through interwoven stories of career-oriented women of Pakistani and Indian descent, navigating the tightrope of politics, personal ambition, and family expectations in modern Boston, Painted Hands ultimately celebrates the redemptive, transcendent power of love and friendship.” ―Anjali Banerjee, author of Enchanting Lily

About the Author

Jennifer Zobair grew up in Iowa and attended Smith College and Georgetown Law School. She has practiced corporate and immigration law and as a convert to Islam, has been a strong advocate for Muslim women's rights. Jennifer lives with her husband and three children outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Painted Hands is her first novel.

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (June 11, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9781250027009
ISBN-13: 978-1250027009
ASIN: 1250027004
Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 1.2 x 8.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 55 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,392,678 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1063 in Books > Literature & Fiction > United States > Asian American
- #3852 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Historical > Cultural Heritage
- #36308 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Women's Fiction > Contemporary

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Kristan Smith-Park

This Book Changes You!

June 28, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

After I read Jennifer Zobair's debut novel, PAINTED HANDS, I was changed. Through her well-crafted prose, Zobair introduces us to a world about which some Americans know very little. We are welcomed into her characters's lives like we are relatives, not readers. We are invested in their lives. We cheer for them, even the conservative, white, talk show host Chase and can't wait to read what is going to happen next. In doing so Jennifer demystifies a culture that normally only gets negative publicity. And that is why I am changed. Before I didn't have much personal experience with people of the Muslim faith. Now thanks to Zobair, I have an introduction so that I will be able to filter what the media says with what Zobair's characters show. It is a start and for that I am grateful to have read PAINTED HANDS.

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Wendy

Universal Human Truth

June 11, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Jennifer Zobair, in PAINTED HANDS, creates a cast of characters that give a fascinating look at Muslim-American culture. Within her story about navigating love and life while balancing Muslim religious and cultural beliefs with an American way of life, Zobair provides an array of characters covering the spectrum between devout followers of Islam and those who reject the beliefs of family and childhood.

The story follows a group of friends for more than a year as they juggle careers, political differences, the trials and tribulations of love and prejudice. Setting aside for a moment that the characters are Muslim, Zobair captures the conflict all women face between the desire to be true to themselves and their own beliefs and the pain we feel when we reject the desires and expectations of family and friends. Layered on top of that is the heavy blanket of cultural responsibility and the judgment of a community that expects you to support its long-standing traditions whether they are good for you or not. Or good for society as a whole.

PAINTED HANDS can be read simply as a story about women facing these issues, or it can be read on a deeper level with an exploration of Muslim-American culture and the politics of being Muslim in America. I enjoyed getting insights into a world I've had little exposure to. Zobair does a fantastic job of illustrating how, when you strip everything else away, we are all just human beings, the same as each other, trying to find our own happy place in the world.

12 people found this helpful

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John Kauffman

My immediate, late night reaction...

June 26, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Wow!

I don't recall feeling so deeply invested emotionally in a cast of characters as in Painted Hands. Maybe it's me, but there's a point in a good book (thus earning the good part) when the characters stop being "them" in my mind, becoming "us." With Painted Hands, that's no easy thing for a guy raised in the culturally homogenous suburbs of the Florida "I-4 corridor," even one who likes to think of himself as liberal in mind and spirit.

I think it elevates Painted Hands beyond merely good - to important.

I'd like to offer my congratulations to Ms Zobair for what I believe is a wonderful achievement. Painted Hands is a great book. I hope a lot of people read it and many minds are opened.

4 people found this helpful

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Harvard Mama

Wonderful and timely!

June 26, 2013

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I loved this book! I read it through dinner, continued while my husband watched TV and stayed up long after he went to sleep so I could finish it ! I was riveted by the characters and their stories. I loved the Boston references. But most of all I loved getting a glimpse into a world that I knew little about - the Muslim-American community. I truly think this book will go a long way in healing many Americans' perceptions of Muslims. I was chilled by the clearly coincidental similarity to real life events. I was so intrigued by the characters' responses to a foiled bomb plot. I wish everyone was required to read this book!

8 people found this helpful

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Northern Writer JEG

WOW: A Fun Read with Profound Insights

May 17, 2015

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

First of all, this is a great read and a well-paced, well-plotted, light story. But here's what really matters: If you want subtle and thoughtful insights into today's Muslim culture, this book portrays today's Muslim Americans honestly and correctly. I wish women's book groups all over the US and Europe would read it because it successfully explains things that the news media and western leaders seem unable to grasp. I say this is as an American woman who married a Muslim herself-- so I know what I am talking about. A fun read with profound insights-- WOW!

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Unique chick lit

August 30, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I read a lot of books, mainly fictions, I consume chick lit in hours. This wasn't the page-turner I was expecting when I started, it was a bit hard to follow. But once Amra, the attorney meets up with her man, it becomes too good to be put down once. As a Muslim, I can relate to a lot of what the characters say and do. As a recent law grad, I can relate to the legal culture surrounding the attorney's position. But these Muslims don't practice Islam the way I do, so it's a unique view to me. It's a great book. It's definitely a unique book, because most books about modern day characters don't follow Muslim women. Great book. Very interesting characters. Especially the talk show host.

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Liz A-O

An interesting look into another culture

August 20, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I very much enjoyed reading a chick lit that wasn't about a vapid blonde woman in NYC. (Granted, these women ARE in big, east coast cities. And, their story lines DO revolve around their relationships with men.) The author's writing style was nothing new or thrilling, but her perspective was very refreshing, and I thought her ability to convey the lives of the women in her book was generally very good. The only character that seemed weakly developed was the caucasian woman who was sort of "trying on" Islam. But, otherwise, likable and interesting characters. A fun read.

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stitcher16

I read it to get another view of life from another culture and it was good in that sense

June 17, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I ordered this book on my Kindle and I wish there had been a page explaining all the ethnic terms used in the book. I read it to get another view of life from another culture and it was good in that sense. I found myself really interested in what happened to the characters in the book and anxious to see how everything turned out.

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