The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Mohsin Hamid

'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' impressed me on a number of different levels. It is a sparse, short book which reflects on culture, terrorism, xenophobia, capitalism and mental illness. This may sound like an intimidating list, but the way that Mohsin Hamid subtly weaves these issues into the narrative makes the story one that is very easy to read and totally enthralling. Like many of the best books, the entire story takes place during one short night. A strange man approaches an American with the words, 'Excuse me sir, but may I be of assistance? Ah, I see that I have alarmed you. Do not be ... more

I decided to read The Reluctant Fundamentalist as I had really enjoyed another novel by Mohsin Hamid, Moth Smoke. Like Moth Smoke, The Reluctant Fundamentalist drew me in straight away and gripped me from the very first lines: "Excuse me, Sir, may I be of any assistance? Ah, I see I have alarmed you. Do not be frightened by my beard. I am a lover of America". The whole book is written as a monologue in the voice of a young Pakistani man, Changez. He meets an American near a cafe in Lahore and persuades the man to have tea and dinner with him, sitting talking for hours. Changez addresses the ... more

Skillfully-composed, clever in execution - and only occasionally too much so for its own good - Mousin Hamed's The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a crafty novella that examines the east-west rift that has only deepened over the past decade. At one point in proceedings, our protagonist Changez is told of the Janissaries; Christian children taken by the Ottoman Empire and trained to fight unquestioningly against their own people. A Pakistani in New York, Changez begins to see himself in the same light, and question his own allegiances. The story is told entirely in the form of Changez's monologue ... more