(4/16/2008)
While it might help, you don’t really need to know about Pakistan’s history to really enjoy this book. Mohammed Hanif has the ability to make you care about varied characters, even the purported villains.
Ali Shigri is the main character, but the book is written from the points of view of multiple characters, which removes it from a narrow tale about revenge, into a much broader story encompassing as many concerns as there are characters.
I found that I was eager to get to each chapter to see what new layer would be revealed about the story. Additionally, Hanif’s sardonic humor actually had me laughing out loud. I am generally not fond of political novels, but if more were as well written as this, I’d probably have to change my mind.
I quite recommend this book