Alicia Keys recommended Love Deluxe by Sade in Music (curated)
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Unmarriageable: A Novel in Books
May 7, 2019
Anyway. Austen. I've read a bunch of retellings but believe it or not, I haven't read the original. I really need to get on that, but instead, I read Unmarriageable, which is Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan! It's SO GOOD. The themes of family honor, class structure, and rumors damaging reputations translates incredibly easily into Pakistani society, which is why Soniah Kamal wrote it. In her Afterword, she writes:
"Was there any worry more Pakistani than the concern about what might bring a family honor or dishonor? .... Was there anything more Pakistani than [Charlotte's] calculated, 'arranged' marriage? ... Was there anything more apropos to Pakistan than class issues, snootiness, and double standards?"
She goes on to say she was already reading the book as if it was set in Pakistan, so why not write it that way for other Pakistanis? Kamal explains that Pakistan is very much a mix of Pakistan and English culture, and that the emphasis on learning English and English culture comes at the expense of their own indigenous culture, something forced upon them by colonizers. Unmarriageable is her way of melding the two cultures.
I really enjoyed this version of the classic, and it has me even more interested in other versions, such as Ibi Zoboi's Pride and Sonali Dev's Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors. Book Riot actually ran a short list recently on diverse Austen retellings, and I've added every one of them to my To-Read list!
You can find all my reviews (and links to the things mentioned above) on my blog, http://goddessinthestacks.com
Seth (Highland Gargoyles #4)
8.0
Rate It
Book
Seth, wolf shifter and beta of his island's pack, had his life planned out. He'd mate with the...
Paranormal Romance
Handbook of U.S. Labor Statistics 2015: Employment, Earnings, Prices, Productivity, and Other Labor Data
Book
The Handbook of U.S. Labor Statistics is recognized as an authoritative resource on the U.S. labor...
The Prime Minister's Ironing Board and Other State Secrets: True Stories from the Government Archives
Book
Stored in Whitehall's archives are everything from blood-chilling warnings of imminent nuclear...
TriMet: MAX Green Line Public Art Tour
Podcast
Listen to artists describe their public art along TriMet's MAX Green Line in Portland, Oregon, on...
Operation Avalanche (2016)
6.5
Rate It
Movie
Tongue-in-cheek found-footage conspiracy thriller. A group of young CIA agents hunting a mole within...