Review - 'Scenes From Early Life' by Philip Hensher

Scenes from Early Life by Philip Hensher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This novel is actually a memoir - the narrator being the author's husband, Zaved Mahmood, who grew up against the background of Bangladesh's struggle for independence from Pakistan in the early 1970s. The fact that these are real memories made the narrative all the more interesting for me, and the fact that they're the memories of someone the author loves make for some beautiful, tender detail that bring the characters - the narrator's extended family - vividly to life.
The 'scenes' do not follow chronological order during the first half of the novel, which is mildly confusing initially - though as more pieces of the jigsaw fall into place it become less so, and of course this is the way memories work, one sparking off another with scant regard to the Arrow of Time. The later chapters do follow chronologically, and tie everything up with a final 'What happened to them all?' as a finale.

I'm not reading Hensher's books in order of publication, so I'd already enjoyed 'The Friendly Ones' which also involves a Bangldeshi family and delves into the country's turbulent birth and recent history. This meant that I was excited when, near the end of the novel, Nadira-Auntie leaves with her new husband for Sheffield, where 'The Friendly Ones' is set - a nice piece of dovetailing!

I've learnt a lot about Bangladeshi history and culture from reading these two books, and in Scenes From Early Life there are even some photos included to give visual clues to the streets, parks and buildings described. It was a privilege to meet this family of quirky, brave and memorable characters and to share the narrator's remarkable story, courtesy of his husband's equally remarkable writing skill.



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