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A captivating read from a debut novelist, Brick Lane brings the immigrant milieu of East London to vibrant life. With great poignancy, Ali illuminates a foreign world; her well-developed characters pull readers along on a deeply psychological, almost spiritual journey. Through the eyes of two Bangladeshi sisters—the plain Nazneen and the prettier Hasina—we see the divergent paths of the contemporary descendants of an ancient culture. Hasina elopes to a "love marriage," and young Nazneen, in an arranged marriage, is pledged to a much older man living in London.
Ali's... more A captivating read from a debut novelist, Brick Lane brings the immigrant milieu of East London to vibrant life. With great poignancy, Ali illuminates a foreign world; her well-developed characters pull readers along on a deeply psychological, almost spiritual journey. Through the eyes of two Bangladeshi sisters—the plain Nazneen and the prettier Hasina—we see the divergent paths of the contemporary descendants of an ancient culture. Hasina elopes to a "love marriage," and young Nazneen, in an arranged marriage, is pledged to a much older man living in London.
Ali's skillful narrative focuses on Nazneen's stifling life with her ineffectual husband, who keeps her imprisoned in a city housing project filled with immigrants in varying degrees of assimilation. But Ali reveals a bittersweet tension between the "two kinds of love" Nazneen and her sister experience—that which begins full and overflowing, only to slowly dissipate, and another which emerges like a surprise, growing unexpectedly over years of faithful commitment. Both of these loves have their own pitfalls: Hasina's passionate romance crumbles into domestic violence, and Nazneen's marriage never quite reaches a state of wedded bliss.
Though comparisons have drawn between Ali and Zadie Smith, a better comparison might be made between this talented newcomer and the work of Amy Tan, who so deftly portrays the immigrant experience with empathy and joy. less 
David GoodhartI thought Monica Ali was brilliant at getting under the skin of a Bangladeshi woman brought to England as part of an arranged marriage. There’s a spirit in her that wants to break out. In that sense it’s a very Western, Hollywood narrative of breaking out from constraint. I wasn’t quite sure about the communication with the sister in Bangladesh, which I didn’t feel quite worked. But I thought it... (Source)
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2
This is non-fiction Brick Lane -what life is really like around Brick Lane and the East End. One of the most influential non-fiction books of the 1950s was Family and Kinship in East London which examined in great depth the life of people living in the dockland areas that had been so comprehensively destroyed in the blitz. What has happened since? In the 50 years since the whole area has gone into terrible decline; has been comprehensively redeveloped (sometimes more than once); and, most important of all, has seen the traditional families largely leave, to be replaced by a huge influx of... more This is non-fiction Brick Lane -what life is really like around Brick Lane and the East End. One of the most influential non-fiction books of the 1950s was Family and Kinship in East London which examined in great depth the life of people living in the dockland areas that had been so comprehensively destroyed in the blitz. What has happened since? In the 50 years since the whole area has gone into terrible decline; has been comprehensively redeveloped (sometimes more than once); and, most important of all, has seen the traditional families largely leave, to be replaced by a huge influx of Bangladeshi families - many of whom are now into the second generation. What are their lives like? How is the community coping with the radical change? What are relations like between the old white population and the new Asian population? Does government policy affect racism? (Here the authors show - startlingly - that housing policies have made race relations much worse and must be changed. This will be very controversial). The book is a comprehensive examination of life in one of the most intriguing parts of England - but it stands for all Britain, and indeed everywhere in the world with large new immigrant populations. less David GoodhartMichael Young was a great sociologist who studied kinship and family in East London in the 1950s. And Geoff Dench updates the story to look at the sense of dislocation among the old East End working class created by immigration. It would also be good to mention his earlier book Minorities in the Open Society – a fascinating collection of essays and a really brilliant introduction to the issues,... (Source)
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3
This book is a major reassessment of how immigration is changing our world. The policies of multiculturalism that were implemented in the wake of postwar immigration have, after 9/11, come under intense scrutiny, and the continuing flow of populations has helped to ensure that immigration remains high on the social and political agenda.
Based on his deep knowledge of the European and American experiences, Scheffer shows how immigration entails the loss of familiar worlds, both for immigrants and for host societies, and how coming to terms with a new environment evolves from... more This book is a major reassessment of how immigration is changing our world. The policies of multiculturalism that were implemented in the wake of postwar immigration have, after 9/11, come under intense scrutiny, and the continuing flow of populations has helped to ensure that immigration remains high on the social and political agenda.
Based on his deep knowledge of the European and American experiences, Scheffer shows how immigration entails the loss of familiar worlds, both for immigrants and for host societies, and how coming to terms with a new environment evolves from avoidance through conflict to accommodation. The conflict that accompanies all major migratory movements is not a failure of integration but part of a search for new ways to live together. It prompts an intensive process of self-examination. That is why immigration has such a profound existential impact: it goes to the heart of institutions like the welfare state and liberties like the freedom of expression.
Scheffer argues that our ability to cope with the challenges posed by immigration requires that we move beyond multiculturalism and find a new balance between openness and exclusion. Tolerance cannot be based on avoidance but should rest on the principle of reciprocity, which means that native populations cannot ask of newcomers any more than they themselves are prepared to contribute.
This principled and path-breaking book will establish itself as a classic work on immigration and will be an indispensable text for anyone interested in one of the most important social and political issues of
our time. less David GoodhartScheffer is a Dutch academic who played a large role in the debate about multiculturalism there, fearing that it was leading to two separate, parallel lives. What’s good about this book is that it’s written from the perspective of a liberal sceptic about multiculturalism and large scale immigration. He sets out to neither stigmatise nor sentimentalise the immigrant – as so much other writing... (Source)
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4
In this contentious and ground-breaking study, Randall Hansen draws on extensive archival research to provide a new account of the transformation of the UK into a multicultural society through an analysis of the evolution of immigration and citizenship policy since 1945. Against the prevailing academic orthodoxy, he argues that British immigration policy was not racist but both rational and liberal.
more In this contentious and ground-breaking study, Randall Hansen draws on extensive archival research to provide a new account of the transformation of the UK into a multicultural society through an analysis of the evolution of immigration and citizenship policy since 1945. Against the prevailing academic orthodoxy, he argues that British immigration policy was not racist but both rational and liberal.
less David GoodhartThis book is an extremely impressive summary by a Canadian political scientist of the politics of immigration, particularly from 1948 to 1962. A lot of this field is dominated by a rather simplistic leftism that sees the immigrant as a modern hero with Britain as implacably and peculiarly racist. Of course there was and is racism in Britain, but it’s often exaggerated, or it fails to explain why... (Source)
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5
All four of the bombers involved in 7/7, the deadly attack on London's transport system in July 2005, were aged 30 or under. The spectre of extremist Islam looms large and Muslim youth in the UK are increasingly linked to radical Islamic movements. A clear, balanced examination of this complex issue is long overdue. Philip Lewis sets out to address this by looking at the lives and beliefs of young Muslims aged 18 to 30, against a backdrop of the problems any migrant community face. Beginning with an overview of British Muslim communities, he goes on to explore the nature of the... more All four of the bombers involved in 7/7, the deadly attack on London's transport system in July 2005, were aged 30 or under. The spectre of extremist Islam looms large and Muslim youth in the UK are increasingly linked to radical Islamic movements. A clear, balanced examination of this complex issue is long overdue. Philip Lewis sets out to address this by looking at the lives and beliefs of young Muslims aged 18 to 30, against a backdrop of the problems any migrant community face. Beginning with an overview of British Muslim communities, he goes on to explore the nature of the intergenerational gap in the Muslim community, showing how normal tensions are exaggerated as children are educated in a language and culture different to that of their parents. Patriarchal 'clan politics' and a breakdown in communication between young Muslims and traditional Muslim leaders are dispossessing Islamic youth, leading a small but significant minority to turn to radical groups for somewhere to belong and something to believe in. Lewis concludes by identifying a generational shift from 'clan politics' to what he calls a 'new professionalism' and demonstrates how new organizations and networks of Muslim thinkers are springing up all the time - allowing young Muslims to find positive identities and outlets for their concerns and energies. less 
Tariq RamadanI chose this book because it talks just about what is happening in Britain. Once again, we may agree or not with what he is saying, but he’s showing how the younger generation of Muslims have a better understanding of their environment, are becoming much more integrated and are going beyond the social divides and the social tensions. Philip Lewis is saying much the same as Jane Smith – there are... (Source)
David GoodhartPhilip Lewis is an extremely knowledgeable and interesting writer. He lives in Bradford, which is one of the epicentres of Pakistani Muslim Britain, and is seen as a hotspot for segregation and failed or bad immigration. He is not unsympathetic to the Pakistani position but he is very good at explaining how this came about. (Source)
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