|Book Review|: Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

Book Title: Unmarriageable 

Author: Soniah Kamal

Genre: Fiction, Romance, Chick lit, Retelling, Contemporary, Cultural, Feminism 

Series: Stand alone

No. of books in the series: Stand alone

Book order: 1

Synopsis: 

In this one-of-a-kind retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan, Alys Binat has sworn never to marry—until an encounter with one Mr. Darsee at a wedding makes her reconsider.

A scandal and vicious rumor concerning the Binat family have destroyed their fortune and prospects for desirable marriages, but Alys, the second and most practical of the five Binat daughters, has found happiness teaching English literature to schoolgirls. Knowing that many of her students won’t make it to graduation before dropping out to marry and have children, Alys teaches them about Jane Austen and her other literary heroes and hopes to inspire the girls to dream of more.

When an invitation arrives to the biggest wedding their small town has seen in years, Mrs. Binat, certain that their luck is about to change, excitedly sets to work preparing her daughters to fish for rich, eligible bachelors. On the first night of the festivities, Alys’s lovely older sister, Jena, catches the eye of Fahad “Bungles” Bingla, the wildly successful—and single—entrepreneur. But Bungles’s friend Valentine Darsee is clearly unimpressed by the Binat family. Alys accidentally overhears his unflattering assessment of her and quickly dismisses him and his snobbish ways. As the days of lavish wedding parties unfold, the Binats wait breathlessly to see if Jena will land a proposal—and Alys begins to realize that Darsee’s brusque manner may be hiding a very different man from the one she saw at first glance.

Told with wry wit and colorful prose, Unmarriageable is a charming update on Jane Austen’s beloved novel and an exhilarating exploration of love, marriage, class, and sisterhood.

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

My Thoughts: 

I started off this book in a hospital reception area, waiting for my turn to see the doctor. I straight away read 60 pages in one go till my turn came. It had me gripped right from the start. The book is a very close retell of Pride and Prejudice, but set in a Pakistani setting. I have not read the original by Jane Austen but have watched movies and spin offs enough times to know what the story is about. The book is set in early 2000s era of Pakistan and stays true to Pakistani culture and norms in a lot of ways. I did find some exaggerations and pro-secularism, but any girl can easily relate to this book. 

The story starts off with Alys Binat, second of the Binat daughters. She is a literature teacher in a school at Dilipabad, a peripheral area of Lahore. She is portrayed as an independent woman who believes in paving her own way in life, financially independent and having strong opinions against marriage. Currently she is teaching Pride and Prejudice to her class. She teaches in a school where girls learn to be proper women and prepare them to be proper wives in future. Many her students get married before they complete their 12th grade. Alys (short for Alysba) is often reprimanded by the school principal for her independent, bold thoughts and is also looked down upon for her humble background. The author gives us a detailed background of Binat family. The Binats were rich at one time. Their businesses were flourishing and they travelled the world. Before coming to Pakistan, they used to live in Saudi Arabia and used to spend holidays in USA and UK, study in international schools with multicultural people and had good exposure to the world. Alys' father was betrayed by his own brother, who in his absence transferred all businesses and properties to his name and left them with nothing. This resulted in serious losses to international leg of the business as well and they had no option left but to close it down and come back to Pakistan. When they arrived in Pakistan, they were told to fend for themselves and were graciously given a neglected, forlorn residential property in Dilipabad. Alys' father was a noble man, betrayed and wounded by his own bother, he took his family and settled in Dilipabad 10 years ago. His wife was a smart lady who managed the family consisting of a husband and five daughters and a household on her own. 

Jena who is the elder sister of Alys and is 32 while Alys is 30, their mother is beside herself to get them married to a well settled, rich families with excellent lineage. When an invitation arrives to them for the most happening wedding of the season, Lady Binat is sure that this wedding will help them land suitors for her daughters. So she sets upon herself to prepare for the wedding by making new dresses and jewellery. This would put a massive dent on their monthly budget so it was agreed that dresses shall be customized by their tailor and imitation jewellery shall be bought from a trusted jeweller in Dilipabad. At the wedding, Binat sisters looked epitome of beauty and elegance in their non designer clothes and Jena the eldest one managed to grab the interest of a wealthy bachelor, Fahad Bingla, famously known as Bungles. But as expected, his sisters Hammy and Sammy were ultimate snobs who looked down upon Dilipabad and its residents and were upset over Bungles' interest in Binat sister. At this wedding, we are also introduced to Valentine Darsee, who takes an instant dislike towards Binat family and the feeling is likewise at Alys's end as well. 

The whole rishta culture portrayed throughout the book hits too close and is actual depiction of Pakistan. The book dives deeper into Pakistani culture reflecting how class, wealth and lineage are accounted for marriage and lack thereof perpetuates unavailability of proposals or rejections. However I found a few things I disagree with which are not the norm of our culture in my opinion. Like Mrs. Binat sending out Jena to meet Bungles at his invitation to Polo Club and then the Binat sisters going out for new year night's party unchaperoned but with their parents consent. I found secularism prevalent throughout the book. This may have been more acceptable if the book was set in modern day Pakistan but back in 2000s era, this wasnt the Pakistan portrayed in the book. The book is a re-write of Pride and Prejudice to an extent that even the names are kept similar to original. Like I have never heard of anyone named Looclus or Bingla to date and Valentine Darsee as a muslim name? Really? As the story progresses, we see the above and beyond efforts of Mrs. Binat trying to find suitable matches for her daughters.

I found the book exceptionally refreshing light hearted full of wit, humor and drama. Soniah Kamal outdid herself with this book in my opinion. I simply could not put it down. Its so far the most fun read for me this year and I suggest everyone giving it a go. You wont regret reading the light hearted humor, wit and drama in this book. Feminism is another strong side of this book. Alys is depicted as someone who doesnt let herself be defined by marriage only. This is what attracted Valentine Dasee towards her, who found Alys to possess sound sensibilities and also knew when to put him in his place. 

Availability: 

I purchased this book at Liberty Books and its also available at Readings store. 

Price: 

Rs. 1395

Rating: 

4.5/5