A Place for Us

As the feedback was so good on this book and it was recommended by SJP I was eager to get my hands on this. I found it really hard to get into, and kept waiting for something to happen but nothing really ever did. I gave up reading 3 quarters into the book, I had no will to finish it whatsoever, most boring read this year! Dont bother, and dont believe all the hype.

I really wanted to love this book. I was intrigued by the description and I am always keen to pick up books by new authors, but unfortunately this book did not deliver.Whilst I enjoyed reading about the different characters, I found the changing perspective and time period to be jarring and ultimately it pulled me out of the story. Additionally, I felt that for such a long book there was a lot of detail missing to explain the motivation behind the actions of the characters. I didn't feel emotionally connected to the characters, and this was a shame because I felt there could have been a lot of potential to this story.There were however, odd sentences where I found the writing to be particularly beautiful and I could relate to the observations. But unfortunately this was not enough to make up for the disconnected narrative and the lack of character development.

Bloody hell. To say this exceeded my expectations is an understatement. She tells the story through each family member with such great insight and in a way that most Muslim families in the West could relate to. You find yourself routing for them all throughout, understanding each character's point of view and plight. I was hooked, just wow.

I loved this book and will probably read again. It was a real exploration in to family and all the of unsaid. The book shows a generation torn between cultural and religious boundaries and the need to express oneself and break free. It's so beautiful written, I fully fell in love with this book.

I did really like this book. However after the first section where the story goes back in time to there backstory, did take me a while to really enjoy the story because I felt as though the story wasn’t getting anywhere. But then I carried on just to see if it would improve and it did. As soon as it improved I literally couldn’t put it down. I think some parts from the childhood cut of been cut down because i just found it boring tbh. Overall it was as good. It left me feeling sad and frustrated that one of the characters never reconciles with their family, but hopeful that one day they will. Would love to see a sequel to this as I felt the stories of each of the characters could further explored on their life choices.