Genre: Psychological Fiction
Key Stage: Year 11+ content warning: contains references to racial abuse and discrimination and terrorism (or the threat of it)
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (2007)
Reviewer: Jayden, Year 12
What an amazing book. It is a one sustained monologue of a young Pakistani named Changez who narrates his life story to an unidentified American man in a cafe in the city of Lahore. Changez is a Princeton graduate who once worked as an analyst for a Manhattan financial firm and tells us how his optimistic view of America began to darken in the aftermath of 9/11. It is a short book yet incredibly interesting.
It is an unforgettable novel and I strongly recommend you read it as it is a very powerful story, leaving you asking many questions with alternative viewpoints.