Evil Eye : Discussion Thread

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

The acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of A Woman Is No Man returns with a striking exploration of the expectations of Palestinian-American women, the meaning of a fulfilling life, and the ways our unresolved pasts affect our presents.

Raised in a conservative and emotionally volatile Palestinian family in Brooklyn, Yara thought she would finally feel free when she married a charming entrepreneur who took her to the suburbs. She’s gotten to follow her dreams, completing an undergraduate degree in Art and landing a good job at the local college. As a traditional wife, she also raises their two school-aged daughters, takes care of the house, and has dinner ready when her husband gets home. With her family balanced with her professional ambitions, Yara knows that her life is infinitely more rewarding than her own mother’s. So why doesn’t it feel like enough?

After her dream of chaperoning a student trip to Europe evaporates and she responds to a colleague’s racist provocation, Yara is put on probation at work and must attend mandatory counseling to keep her position. Her mother blames a family curse for the trouble she’s facing, and while Yara doesn’t really believe in old superstitions, she still finds herself growing increasingly uneasy with her mother’s warning and the possibility of falling victim to the same mistakes.

Shaken to the core by these indictments of her life, Yara finds her carefully constructed world beginning to implode. To save herself, Yara must reckon with the reality that the difficulties of the childhood she thought she left behind have very real—and damaging—implications not just on her own future but that of her daughters.

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

9 chapters

(view spoiler)[ I like Yara and her POV. I can't imagine the pressure from her mother in law and then living up the expectations everyone else is putting on her. for as great as her husband is, he still isn't helping and he's still getting to glide through life
I wonder what she will do now - if she's been put on leave at the school. no trip, no job? but what can she do instead? (hide spoiler)]

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

through Ch 23
(view spoiler)[ I feel really bad for her, as Yara has so much pressure from all sides
her husband just hears complaints and doesn't hear what she's really saying
I hope William helps her - I hope she opens up to him
and I like Silas, now that he's working a little hard to shift his thinking. I like that he's opening up more to Yara (hide spoiler)]

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

and I'm done

(view spoiler)[ I'm so glad she was able to sort through her feelings and find her own voice

how horrible her father was, I was so sad she was still taking calls from him up until he hung up on her. I don't think I would have accepted his phone calls anymore

unbelievable what a sneak her husband was! Taking trips and mishandling his time and money - awful that he did all that and then blamed it on her?! horrible. I was glad she left him.

I really liked Silas. How lucky she was that he kept pushing to be friends with her until she finally let him. (hide spoiler)]