When former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto comes home
after
years in exile to run once more for
office, the country lights up in conflict and passions
run high. Case in point: Ali Sikandar, a journalist
assigned to cover Benazir's conflict-filled return. With
his personal life in turmoil and his desire to study in
the United States blocked at every turn, Ali is skeptical
that any good could come of giving a second chance to
someone whose first political term ended in such
disgrace. Even so, he becomes part of a democratic
resistance movement which teaches him some final lessons
about the way his life has gone. Through the clever
weaving of pieces from Ali's past and the distant past of
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, author Bina Shah creates a very
personal, deeply moving story in A SEASON FOR MARTYRS.
What I thought was going to be a
vague cultural criticism novel turns out to be a
fascinating character study and insight into the politics
of Pakistan. The interpersonal relations between the
journalists and Ali's family members are great. The
layered emotions within Ali as he takes his emotional
journey and joins the revolution are exquisite and
absolutely relatable. This is a very well-written novel
and I look forward to reading more by Bina Shah. The
prose style is very straightforward and sprinkled with
great information about the political situations. I love
all the main characters and the fascinating play between
them and everyone on the side.
It can be somewhat hard to understand given the
jumps from various histories to the main story. Each
piece is valuable in its own way, but the form of the
story can be jarring if you prefer a linear narrative. I
also found some problems understanding the historical and
political events, but that comes more from my background
than any issue with the book. If I had my druthers, I'd
have a glossary of terms, something to allow for more
understanding. However, I highly recommend A SEASON FOR
MARTYRS to any who enjoys fascinating and rich novels
which intertwine truth and fiction.
October, 2007. Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto returns home after eight years of exile to seek political office once more. Assigned to cover her controversial arrival is TV journalist Ali Sikandar, the estranged son of a wealthy landowner from the interior region of Sindh. While her presence ignites fierce protests and assassination attempts, Ali finds himself irrevocably drawn to the pro-democracy People’s Resistance Movement, a secret that sweeps him into the many contradictions of a country still struggling to embrace modernity. As Shah weaves together the centuries-old history of Ali’s feudal family and its connection to the Bhuttos, she brilliantly reveals a story at the crossroads of the personal and the political, a chronicle of one man’s desire to overcome extremity to find love, forgiveness, and even identity itself.
This review makes the novel sound fascinating. I am particularly struck by the historical weaving of Pakistani's rich cultural history with a very contemporary story of a troubled young man. (Joseph Olshan 2:31pm January 8, 2015)
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