The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Softcover

Hamid, Mohsin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0141029544 ISBN 13: 9780141029542

Publisher: Penguin, 2008

Synopsis

The internationally bestselling, Man Booker-shortlisted portrait of a man caught between conflicting identities and betrayed by the world he has embraced - from the author of Exit West

Adapted as a major film starring Kate Hudson and Kiefer Sutherland

'Masterful . . . A poignant love story and a thriller that subtly ratchets up the nerve-jangling tension towards an explosive ending' Metro

'Excuse me, sir, but may I be of assistance? Ah, I see I have alarmed you. Do not be frightened by my beard. I am a lover of America . . . '

So speaks the mysterious stranger at a Lahore cafe as dusk settles. Invited to join him for tea, you learn his name and what led this speaker of immaculate English to seek you out. For he is more worldy than you might expect; better travelled and better educated. He knows the West better than you do. And as he tells you his story, of how he embraced the Western dream -- and a Western woman -- and how both betrayed him, so the night darkens. Then the true reason for your meeting becomes abundantly clear . . .

Challenging, mysterious and thrillingly tense, Mohsin Hamid's masterly The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a vital read teeming with questions and ideas about some of the most pressing issues of today's globalised, fractured world.

About this title

Review:

A profoundly contemporary story about civil wars, unstable countries and refugees pouring to the cities of the West... beautifully written, with the ghost of Camus hovering at the edge of the frame (New Statesman)

From the Back Cover:

Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2007

'Excuse me, sir, but may I be of assistance? Ah, I see I have alarmed you. Do not be frightened by my beard. I am a lover of America . . . '

Take a seat opposite a stranger. Linger with him as dusk falls over Lahore. He wants to tell you his story.

This stranger is well-travelled and well-educated. He speaks immaculate English and knows the West better than you do. And as the night darkens around you both, he will tell you how he embraced the Western dream - and a Western woman - and how both betrayed him. Because there's no such thing as coincidence, and this man is here on this night, at this café table, for a reason.

Highly nuanced and thrillingly tense, Mohsin Hamid's masterly The Reluctant Fundamentalist teems with urgent questions, forcing each of us to face the complex human realities of a globalised, fractured world.

'Sharp, cool [and] relevant... An impressively intelligent thriller' Daily Telegraph

'Superbly considered and controlled, with a stillness and wisdom at its heart' The Times

'Masterful... A multi-layered and thoroughly gripping book, which works as a poignant love story and a thriller that subtly ratchets up the nerve-jangling tension towards an explosive ending' Metro

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0141029544
• ISBN 13: 9780141029542
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 209