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The Reluctant Fundamentalist

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Author: Mohsin Hamid
Publisher: Harvest Books
Category: Book

List Price: ~~$14.00~~
Buy New: $2.54
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Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 208
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.6

ISBN: 0156034026
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780156034029
ASIN: 0156034026

Publication Date: April 14, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 100

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Meaning of the title October 10, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

The title is a double entendre. The protagonist is "reluctant" to work for an American company. And what does the company do? They specialize in using "fundamentals" for valuation analysis. Ha.

4 out of 5 stars

IS AMERICA READY FOR CHANGEZ? October 9, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

This is the ultimate "the philosophy of East versus West" novel and although I was disturbed and, at times, resentful of the portrait of America and Americans as portrayed by the narrator of this tale, I was also enthralled and unable to stop reading. br /br /The story is related in the form of a monologue between the chronicler, Changez, and an anonymous American stranger who he meets quite by chance in a cafe in Pakistan. His tale commences as he leaves his homeland to pursue an education at Princeton (an opportunity few Americans can afford) and after graduation is hired by a prestigious New York company at a very generous starting salary. He is at first enamored with the American lifestyle, but after 9/11 discovers a feeling of kinship with the perpetrators while becoming more and more critical of his host country. br /br /Author Hamid uses his creation, Changez, to do a bit of finger wagging by having Changez espouses the belief that the U.S. "interferes in the affairs of other countries" while on the other he laments the U.S. resistance to "interfere" in the growing tensions between Pakistan and India. (reminiscent of a teenager who comes to you for financial help but is annoyed when you attempt to provide some guidance to prevent a repeat of their financial woes and who, after accepting your cash, tells you to "stop interfering in their lives".) br /br /Changez observation that America is "giving itself over to dangerous nostalgia" is replayed for the reader in his allegorical retelling of his relationship with Erica, an AmERICAn woman who he loves but who is so resistant to letting go of her memories of her deceased lover that she is unable to accept Changez (changes???) and is ultimately destroyed because of her obsessive love of the past.br /br / I will admit that Hamid is an extraordinary writer whose ability to draw you into the story and hold your attention is undeniable. The subject matter being served in The Reluctant Fundamentalist, however, may not be a dish easily digested nor may it be suitable for every readers' palate. Taste and see for yourself.br /

5 out of 5 stars

Wonderfully nuanced insight into Pakistan and the US October 2, 2008
I was hooked at the first page. I love the narrator's style: you are the listener and can just imagine sitting opposite Changez in Lahore's Old Anarkali: definitely those who have been, and I hope also those who have not. Since, I believe, this book gives a wonderfully nuanced insight into the beautiful hospitable country Pakistan is and how external events and categorisations trigger in people emotions that are often misunderstood and which trigger further events into a vicious circle.br /br /It is not a pessimistic book, but a personal recount which could lead to breaking the vicious circle of mistrust by bringing better understanding through a beautiful piece of prosa!

5 out of 5 stars

Engrossing Novel September 24, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

This is an engrossing novel that takes place solely in a cafe in Lahore, Pakistan. A young man who attended Princeton and lived in New York City is trying to explain to a reluctant American why he is feeling compelled to... do what?

4 out of 5 stars

An Insightful Novel, Often Over-Simplified in Reviews Below September 6, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Interesting view of the U.S. through a fictitious Pakistani's eyes as his spirit deteriorates due to the political and personal events he endures. Periodically, somewhat affected voice due to the style of narration, but a nonetheless quick and compelling read.br /br /I think some reviewer have conflated the narrator's voice with the author's. I doubt very much that Mohsin Hamid agrees with every word he placed in the mouth his narrator's mouth. (This should go without saying, but we live in very literal and very divisive times.) Rather he was showing how the narrator's character change was precipitated by a number events (again both political and personal), which he weathered. In other words, the narrator's anger towards the United States was inextricably wound up with his pain at losing his lover. He was unable to tease these apart and it lead him into a different, more volatile state of mind. The fact that Hamid can demonstrate this unraveling makes him a sensitive writer and a keen observer of the human condition, not an advocate for terrorism. That said, the book does include some pointed and relevant criticism of the U.S. I just think it's an oversimplification to assume Hamid's giving the narrator's point of view a big thumbs up. It's a richer, more sophisticated narrative than that.

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