false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178704154m/823815.jpg 823815 11 The experiences of a woman drawn into the 1971 Bangladesh war for independence illuminate the conflict's wider resonances in Anam's impressive debut, the first installment in a proposed trilogy. Rehana Haque is a widow and university student in Dhaka with two children, 17-year-old daughter Maya and 19-year-old son Soheil. As she follows the daily patterns of domesticity -— cooking, visiting the cemetery, marking religious holidays -— she is only dimly aware of the growing political unrest until Pakistani tanks arrive and the fighting begins. Suddenly, Rehana's family is in peril and her children become involved in the rebellion. The elegantly understated restraint with which Anam recounts ensuing events gives credibility to Rehana's evolution from a devoted mother to a woman who allows her son's guerrilla comrades to bury guns in her backyard and who shelters a Bengali army major after he is wounded. The reader takes the emotional journey from atmospheric scenes of the marketplace to the mayhem of invasion, the ruin of the city, evidence of the rape and torture of Hindus and Bengali nationalists, and the stench and squalor of a refugee camp. Rehana's metamorphosis encapsulates her country's tragedy and makes for an immersive, wrenching narrative. (<i>Publishers Weekly</i>) 1387754 2007 A Golden Age total:378|5:63|4:186|3:98|2:26|1:5| 378 1410 706 134 4 5 false false Thu May 29 14:16:59 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 19 20:22:12 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Mar 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 06 13:04:46 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 11 00:08:29 -0700 2009
The story takes place during the nine-month-long Bangladesh...more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Feb 14 06:56:56 -0800 2008 Thu Feb 21 05:41:38 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Jan 23 07:09:17 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 23 07:13:29 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu May 15 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon May 12 19:55:11 -0700 2008 Thu May 15 13:51:36 -0700 2008
It's a great story about a widow and mother who's caug...more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 15 18:22:16 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 18 15:21:46 -0800 2008 I judged a book by the (beautiful) cover and boy, am I glad I did! This is an excellent first book by Bangladeshi born writer Tahmima Anam. Anam delivers a powerful story about Rehana and her young adult children trying to survive during the liberation war fought against Pakistan. Anam does a ...more...]]> 2 1 false false Sun Aug 05 08:31:21 -0700 2007 Sun Aug 05 08:32:39 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Jan 22 14:19:13 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 14:23:03 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 1 false false Fri Nov 23 06:56:01 -0800 2007 Wed Nov 21 08:37:29 -0800 2007 Fri Nov 23 06:55:49 -0800 2007 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Feb 05 09:53:44 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 09:53:44 -0800 2009 Tahmima Anam's ambitious and powerful debut is the first novel in English to describe Bangladesh's war for independence, a brutal conflict that left 3 million dead and 10 million homeless. Anam's attempt to portray the violence and cruelty of political events through the personal experiences of a si...

more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri May 23 13:20:16 -0700 2008 Fri May 23 13:23:11 -0700 2008 3 1 false false Mon Feb 09 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 07 18:26:20 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 10 18:44:00 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Mar 29 19:33:32 -0700 2008 Sat Mar 29 19:37:19 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Thu Aug 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 05:21:59 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 23 13:26:00 -0700 2009
It is also a story of a mother's love for and determination to protect her children and their involvement in the independence movement. The descriptions of...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Sep 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 06 20:38:31 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 06 20:43:23 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Mon Nov 10 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Oct 25 10:47:41 -0700 2008 Mon Nov 10 08:15:23 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Oct 05 22:58:37 -0700 2008 Sun Oct 05 23:04:50 -0700 2008
In 1958, Rehana is the young widow of Iqbal Haque, an insurance guy who died too young. A court decreed that her children Maya and Sohail be raised by his brother, ...more...]]> 2 1 false false Mon Sep 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 29 21:21:37 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 29 21:29:21 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Aug 13 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 11 22:26:56 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 13 13:34:09 -0700 2008
1. The writing. Reminds me of Jhumpa Lahiri--this overarching sense of calm compassion even in the midst of terrible tragedy (personal and political). It's very spare, simple prose that at the same time has a lush, colorful quality (which also reminds ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Aug 12 08:20:56 -0700 2007 Tue Jul 24 06:59:09 -0700 2007 Fri Jul 27 06:06:50 -0700 2007
At just under 300 pages, Anam's Golden Age is a quick read. In fact, I think I could have easily inhale...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=823815