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The Reluctant Fundamentalist

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The Reluctant Fundamentalist

By: Mohsin Hamid
Narrated by: Mohsin Hamid
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About this listen

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Reluctant Fundamentalist written and read by Mohsin Hamid.

'Excuse me, sir, but may I be of assistance? Ah, I see I have alarmed you. Do not be frightened by my beard. I am a lover of America . . . '

So speaks the mysterious stranger at a Lahore cafe as dusk settles. Invited to join him for tea, you learn his name and what led this speaker of immaculate English to seek you out. For he is more worldy than you might expect; better travelled and better educated. He knows the West better than you do. And as he tells you his story, of how he embraced the Western dream -- and a Western woman -- and how both betrayed him, so the night darkens. Then the true reason for your meeting becomes abundantly clear . . .

'Masterful . . . A poignant love story and a thriller that subtly ratchets up the nerve-jangling tension towards an explosive ending' Metro

©2008 Mohsin Hamid (P)2018 Penguin Audio Adventure Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Political Science Fiction Heartfelt

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I loved this book. It is on my son's IB 6th form syllabus and i listened to it to help him! what a treat! beautifully written and thought provoking with he parallels throughout the novel. wonderfully narrated too.

beautiful

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A remarkable story telling itself in its own likeness. Told like a tapestry is woven.

A Self-fulfilling Prophecy

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The format of this single voice narration was unusual and very effective. I’m still not sure what the ending is.

Very satisfying listen

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this book resonated with me as I live in a country where the hostility between large empires has damaged many innocent lives. It is a great listen if you want to gain more of a human perspective on significant political matters

pertinent to today's global affairs

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It’s not often I read something that criticises the political ‘big dogs’ and I respect what was done here in creating a picture of criticising America while maintaining intimacy. People can be so polarised by political opinions and I like how this was handled. The book gives us an insight into the conversation in a way that, at first, feels conspiratorial and like there is a budding camaraderie. There is a building discomfort through the story which leads to the interesting ending and questions of our narrator’s reliability. Very much enjoyed the story and its performance.

Interesting narration style

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I enjoyed this book but I was for some reason underwhelmed.

The story is concise and it’s content is interesting. The narrator is spot on for the character and I was drawn into the world described, which is full of beautiful descriptions of places, people and food. The ending was a good cliffhanger and all would seem well.

However, I think I struggled with what felt like a contrived story to make a point about some of the US and west’s unbridled ruthless capitalism. These are fair points but I just couldn’t quite buy then protagonists motivation. Perhaps this is just because I am a westerner, but in any case I just didn’t like this aspect of an otherwise good listen.

Many others will disagree and this is why you may want to listen

Good listen I struggled to buy into the characters motivation

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The cultural nuances of Punjabi culture. The vivid language and the sense of belonging for the people of Pakistan .

A great story teller

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Hearing this ,felt to me ,like I really was sitting close by whilst the story in the book was actually happening. I’ve never experienced anything like that before and so I truly thank the writer/narrator for it all ...

Amazing and spellbinding

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Great story merging a young man's thwarted love affair with a young woman doomed by the death of her first and only live, a childhood sweetheart, with the story of his dissallusionment with his work, with America and its ethics, compounded by time and place and culture. Excellently read by the author whose clear flowing writing style is very suited to the confessional nature of how this story is told.

Extraordinarily brilliant

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An entirely captivating and beautiful story of love and the ties that bind you to the past. Mohsin Hamid's narration of his own novel is first rate. Short enough to listen to in a single session once you start you won't stop.

Captivating

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