Review: Jameela Green Ruins Everything

Zarqa Nawaz’s debut novel was described to me as being a dark comedy. Between that and the cover, I thought, hey this could be a good read. And it was. Jameela Green Ruins Everything is completely bonkers in the best way but underneath the excellent writing and entertaining story, the novel also takes a look at the issues between the US and the Middle East. It’s heavy and light all at the same time and it’s a great read.

Here’s the book’s description:

Jameela Green only has one wish.
To see her memoir on the New York Times bestseller list. When her dream doesn’t come true, she seeks spiritual guidance at her local mosque. New imam and recent immigrant Ibrahim Sultan is appalled by Jameela’s shallowness, but agrees to assist her on one condition: that she perform a good deed.
Jameela reluctantly accepts his terms, kicking off a chain of absurd and unfortunate events. When the person the two do-gooders try to help is recruited by a terrorist group called D.I.C.K.—Dominion of the Islamic Caliphate and Kingdoms—the federal authorities become suspicious of Ibrahim, and soon after, the imam mysteriously disappears. 
Certain that the CIA have captured Ibrahim for interrogation via torture, Jameela decides to set off on a one-woman operation to rescue him. Her quixotic quest soon finds her entangled in an international plan targeting the egomaniacal leader of the terrorist organization—a scheme that puts Jameela, and countless others, including her hapless husband and clever but disapproving daughter, at risk.

I honestly wasn’t expecting to laugh as much as I did when I started reading this book. It is funny and so well written. The circumstances aren’t funny – Jameela’s imam is being forced to infiltrate a terrorist group. But that group goes by D.I.C.K. Like, come on. How can you not snicker?

Nawaz’s characters will stick in your mind for a long while. Not just Jameela and Ibrahim but the terrorists they encounter as well. You won’t feel sympathetic for those men, not exactly, but by meeting a large number of the residents in the community, you’ll be reminded that human nature is complicated and not as black and white as we like to think.

Jameela isn’t a particularly likeable character as she’s pretty self-centred and comes across as a bit abrasive. But, over the course of the novel, the reader learns why Jameela is the way she is and, again, is reminded that there are layers to people and reasons for their actions that we may never know about. Jameela dealt with a hugely traumatic event when she was a teen and hadn’t appropriately dealt with it, though she thought she had. It was really lovely to see her work through some issues and have some closure by the end of the book.

I was honestly on the edge of my seat as I was reading this book. I had no idea how Jameela was going to save herself and Ibrahim from D.I.C.K. And then her daughter shows up and my stress levels skyrocketed. Her daughter is a force to be reckoned with though – she was so fun to read. I truly couldn’t have predicted the ending (though I knew what I was hoping for, the details were fuzzy) and I really appreciated that.

As serious as some of the topics in Zarqa Nawaz’s novel are, Jameela Green Ruins Everything still manages to be lighthearted and you’ll find yourself laughing at some of the circumstances Jameela and friends get into. It’s worth a read!

*An ARC of this novel was provided by the publisher, Simon & Schuster Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

Review: Too Much Lip

If you follow me on Instagram, you'll likely know that I've been to Australia twice and I absolutely love the country (and I don't shut up about it). I don't, however, read many Australian authors. I have a feeling that some of that has to do with rights and what is available to Canadian publishers for Canadian bloggers to read. All that to say, when I came across Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko, I was intrigued and immediately interested. It's a super dark comedy that was different than anything else I've read this year and I enjoyed it.

Here's the synopsis:

Wise-cracking Kerry Salter has spent a lifetime avoiding two things - her hometown and prison. But now her Pop is dying and she's an inch away from the lockup, so she heads south on a stolen Harley. Kerry plans to spend twenty-four hours, tops, over the border. She quickly discovers, though, that Bundjalung country has a funny way of grabbing on to people. Old family wounds open as the Salters fight to stop the development of their beloved river. And the unexpected arrival on the scene of a good-looking dugai fella intent on loving her up only adds more trouble - but then trouble is Kerry's middle name. Gritty and darkly hilarious, Too Much Lip offers redemption and forgiveness where none seems possible.

I do have to say I don't think I was quite in the mood for this book when I read it. I'm definitely a big mood reader and I hadn't realized quite how dark it was going to be. It's definitely more drama than comedy, I felt, but that's not a bad thing. Just took awhile for my brain and expectations to catch up.

Not only was this book set in Australia, but it takes place close-ish to where I've traveled. The town Kerry grew up in is fictional but a few real towns were mentioned so I could get a better idea of the location. It also caused massive wanderlust for me! I can't wait to go back. 

You may have noticed the synopsis mention "Bundjalung country." Bundjalung people are an Aboriginal nation in Australia, which, we should all know is a country with some problems with how they've treated the original custodians of the country (and I say this as a Canadian who knows her own country has many problems as well). Like a lot of readers, I've been trying to seek out more BIPOC authors for the last couple of years and show my support to those authors (and show publishers that we want and need stories by authors who aren't white and straight). I'm really happy to have stumbled across this book (seriously, I had to find it myself in the publisher's catalogue...no one was talking about it).

This novel is about more than a granddaughter returning home as her grandfather is dying. Lucashenko does not shy away from really tough subjects that need to be explored in literature and in life. There were disputes over land rights as well as a lot of trauma in the family. Some characters, like Kerry, have questions about their sexuality. Yes, there was a lot going on but it wasn't confusing in the least. It made my heart hurt and yet also made me laugh out loud a few times. And it taught me a few new words, too.

I think I would have liked Too Much Lip a little bit more if it were less literary (not my favourite) and more comedic. This is, completely, a personal reading preference and doesn't make the book any less good. Because it is that: a really good book. Melissa Lucashenko's novel was an engaging read though and I definitely recommend it, especially to those like me who are trying to expand their reading horizons. I'd also love to talk this book through with someone else who's read it!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, HarperCollins Canada, in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*