Good People by Patmeena Sabit (audiobook)

genre: contemporary fiction

When the Sharaf family arrived in the US as refugees from Afghanistan, they never could’ve predicted that they’d end up living in an expensive suburb of Washington DC. With financial security achieved and a vibrant social community, the Sharafs seem to have everything. But from the beginning of this book, we know that something has gone horribly wrong. And in this documentary style format, we slowly learn not only what happened, but we have to figure out who is responsible.

What an engaging book! For sure I am glad I did the audiobook because all the different voices definitely helped me keep things straight. I really was intrigued by this fly-on-the-wall look into a complex and beautiful culture that is so unfamiliar to me. Yes, sometimes it is also upsetting, the way that women and girls are put on a pedestal of modesty that is wrapped up so tightly in their intrinsic value that I can see how it could feel suffocating, even if it was how you were raised. It’s a mystery and a character study and hard look at the way racism and intolerance can still burn so toxically in American society. I went back and forth, sometimes within the same half an hour, KNOWING what happened, only then to decide I was wrong and that something ELSE happened.  I definitely recommend.