Review

Brick Lane

By Monica Ali

Published by Black Swan

Monica Ali’s debut novel garnered pre-publication interviews and reviews that would please any more-established author.

Indeed, Doubleday agreed to publish the book on the strength of the first chapter alone, and on the same evidence Granta chose Ali as one of the latest batch of Best of Young British Novelists.

The book tells the story of Nazneen, born in rural Bangladesh, but sent to London to marry and settle in the Bangladeshi community of London's Brick Lane, where she has to adapt to motherhood, the complexities of expatriate life and the strangeness of a bleak and cold country.

Brought up to accept the role of Fate in her life, she gradually becomes disenchanted with passivity as a model for living. Finally, when it really matters, she chooses to make her own decisions.

The strength of Ali’s writing lies in her characterisation. Nazneen is a lovingly-drawn portrait of a woman trapped between obedience and freedom, but this is to generalise the shades of character and emotion that Ali gives her. Nazneen’s husband, Chanu, is a masterful creation, a blundering, self-educated, proud man, bursting with grand ideas and schemes that come to naught. Beneath his bombast and pomposity, however, lies an essentially decent person, bemused by the puzzle of life.

The other characters in the book reinforce the strong sense of alienation and confusion that affect immigrants to any country. In Nazneen’s world, tradition struggles to hold its own against the overwhelming tide of the modern (her eldest daughter Shahana, in particular, just wants to be like other girls at her school) and many are forced to adapt. Racism as a threat and a reality also comes to play a large part in their lives.

These are big themes which Monica Ali explores with care and respect. Her writing has an assured and measured quality that allows the story to unfold with grace and charm; occasionally, she will startle with the acuity of her observations and imagery. Brick Lane has strong political and sociological themes, but Nazneen and the other members of her community are more than mere caricatures; rather, they form and enrich the very heart of this unusual book.

Reviewed by James Smith, Booktrust website editor

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