Ayesha at Last

Starred review from April 1, 2019
In this excellent modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, aspiring poet Ayesha Shamsi juggles her dreams and the stifling expectations of Toronto’s Indian-Muslim community. She picks a practical career as a high school teacher and watches as her flighty younger cousin, Hafsa, collects marriage proposals like trading cards. After a misunderstanding, Ayesha pretends to be Hafsa while planning a youth conference, where she is required to collaborate with conservative Khalid, a newcomer to the area. Ayesha pegs Khalid as rigid and judgmental on their first meeting because of his white robes and reserved behavior. She doesn’t object to arranged marriages, but believes compatibility is important, and she scorns Khalid’s complacency with accepting his mother’s choice of bride. Family loyalty is a recurring theme, as Ayesha puts her hopes of being a poet on hold while she earns money to repay her wealthy uncle and Khalid refuses to question his overbearing mother. As Ayesha and Khalid work on the conference together, Khalid learns to accommodate different viewpoints. With humor and abundant cultural references, both manifest in the all-seeing all-criticizing aunty brigade, Jalaluddin cleverly illustrates the social pressures facing young Indian-Muslim adults. Jalaluddin stays true to the original Austen while tackling meatier issues likes workplace discrimination, alcoholism, and abortion. Even readers unfamiliar with Austen’s work will find this a highly entertaining tale of family, community, and romance. Agent: Ann Collette, Rees Literary.

April 1, 2019
A smart young Muslim Canadian woman navigates the complexities of career, love, and family in this lively homage to a Jane Austen classic. "While it is a truth universally acknowledged that a single Muslim man must be in want of a wife, there's an even greater truth: To his Indian mother, his own inclinations are of secondary importance." With that nod to Pride and Prejudice firmly in place, Jalaluddin lays the groundwork for a raucous story that mixes a zany cast of characters with a tightly wound plot. The "single Muslim man" in question is the handsome Khalid Mirza, who's hiding behind a long beard and loose-fitting traditional clothes. Unlike his Muslim colleague, Amir, Khalid refuses to "edit" his identity by shaving or wearing jeans and is therefore unfortunately typecast even, at first, by his ravishing neighbor, Ayesha Shamsi. The 27-year-old Ayesha, focused on her teaching career and moonlighting as a poet, doesn't have time for "fundy" Khalid, but, predictably, their paths keep intersecting. Khalid is a mama's boy, though, and will do what she says when it comes to marriage. As a series of unfortunate events plays out, it becomes increasingly clear that there is more to both Khalid's and Ayesha's stories. What happened to Khalid's sister? Why does Ayesha feel beholden to her young and pretty cousin, Hafsa? Jalaluddin expertly works in a healthy number of parallel plotlines and keeps the reader invested in the final outcome. The ending might be predictable (this is Pride and Prejudice lite, after all) and a few peripheral characters feel one-dimensional, but all is forgiven as the story races along to its gushy and adorable wrap. Scheming aunties, headstrong cousins, sweet grandparents, Pakistani-Canadian masala, and good old-fashioned romance are just the right ingredients for a delicious and entertaining novel.

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May 1, 2019

Gr 10 Up-In this adult novel, a contemporary spin on Pride and Prejudice, Ayesha and Khalid's mutual attraction wins out over their initial misconceptions of each other. They can't help falling in love, even though Khalid is expected to follow through with the marriage that his mother is arranging for him-to Ayesha's cousin. Jalaluddin's debut is a Muslim love story that expertly navigates the intersections of identity, religion, culture, tradition, familial expectations, and personal dreams.

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 7, 2019

DEBUT Aspiring poet and substitute teacher Ayesha Shamsi lives with her close-knit family in Toronto. As the eldest daughter, she's expected to set a good example, but she wants to explore the possibilities of life before settling down. Then she meets Khalid Mirza. Their first encounter doesn't go smoothly--Ayesha finds him judgmental and too traditional--but their paths continue to cross as Ayesha, posing as her flighty cousin, Hafsa, and Khalid collaborate on a conference at their local mosque. They soon realize that their first impressions of each other were inaccurate--just in time for the announcement of Khalid's engagement to the real Hafsa. While the love story is the heart of this delightful novel, Jalaluddin also delves into deeper themes, including workplace discrimination, the role of religion in modern society, and the meaning of love and marriage in contemporary culture. VERDICT There's an overabundance of Pride and Prejudice retellings, but few are as thoughtful and creative as this stellar debut from an author to watch. Jalaluddin takes a familiar plot and transforms it into a contemporary #ownvoices romance that is fresh, insightful, and thoroughly modern. The story of Ayesha and Khalid will leave readers swooning, but it will also get them thinking.--Nanette Donohue, Champaign P.L., IL

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 15, 2019
Khalid Mirza knows his mother will find him a wife more appropriate than outspoken Ayesha Shamsi; too bad he can't stop thinking about her. Ayesha sees how conservative Khalid disapproves of her family, her teaching job, and the poetry she performs at a local lounge, but she can't seem to stop running into him, first in their east Toronto neighborhood, then on the organizing committee for the Muslim Youth Conference at their mosque. This modern, Muslim update of Pride and Prejudice will have readers smiling as they recognize the clever ways debut novelist Jalaluddin incorporates Austen's words into her work. But even more powerful are the updated details: Khalid's traditional dress causes trouble with his racist manager (a plus-size lingerie company unexpectedly comes to the rescue); Ayesha's independence and feminism make her stand out when she wants to blend in. Mistaken identity, Tim Hortons, a wrestling life coach, a villain who puts Wickham to shame, and a spoiled cousin obsessed with marriage all add to the richness of this winning novel. Ayesha, especially, is Lizzie Bennet-level relatable: sometimes she says more than she should, but she is always true to herself, and it's pretty swoon-worthy to watch Khalid grow to deserve her.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)