Under the Tamarind Tree is not necessarily the type of fiction I gravitate toward, but it sounded like a good story so I went with it. I have no regrets. I learned a lot about the history of India and Pakistan and particularly The Partition which I knew absolutely nothing about and had never heard of. I found myself looking into it more just to understand the dynamics of that time. I needed have worried though because the author brought way more to the table than a surface story. What would you do to protect your closest friends? To protect your families? Four best friends will have to confront these questions and so much more. This story also brought to light (for me, in any case), the strict limitations heaped on the women of that time and that culture. It's hard for me to fathom having had the freedoms I have had here in the United States. I loved the juxtaposition of having Zara and Rozee interact on such a personal level...and a few surprise twists as well.

Prepare to be swept away on a journey of profound emotions and lingering secrets in Nigar Alam's debut novel, "Under the Tamarind Tree." Set against the backdrop of the haunting echoes of Partition (which was not something I was familiar with - thanks to the US education), this captivating tale delves into four friends and the interwoven threads of their lives.

In 1964 Karachi, Rozeena is faced with the pressing urgency of establishing her medical career. As her aspirations collide with unexpected consequences, her childhood friends Haaris, Aalya, and Zohair find themselves grappling with the shifting tides of society that threaten to tear them apart. A single fateful night shatters their once-unbreakable bond, altering the course of their lives forever. Fast forward to 2019, where Rozeena receives an unexpected call that reignites a connection she believed was lost. What begins as an act of kindness unravels hidden truths and unearths buried pain, weaving an unconventional friendship that traverses the boundaries of time and generations. "Under the Tamarind Tree" delicately explores the intricate web of generational trauma, fraying friendships, and the lengths to which people will go to safeguard their loved ones.

Alam's enchanting prose and vivid visual descriptions paint a mesmerizing tapestry that envelops the reader. The mystery at the heart of the narrative casts a spell of increasingly mounting tension, keeping readers perched at the edge of their seats. As a reader who ventured outside my usual genre, I found myself entranced by the poignant themes of grief and loss. The portrayal of sibling loss resonated deeply with me, as I empathized with the characters' struggles to navigate their shattered worlds and fill the void left behind.

Through Alam's storytelling, "Under the Tamarind Tree" invites us to contemplate the complexities of aging, the inexorable passage of time, and the bittersweet reality that life seldom adheres to neat and tidy endings. The conclusion, though not entirely satisfying in the conventional sense, mirrors the unpredictability of life itself—an authentic representation of how we find solace and joy amidst life's imperfections.

"Under the Tamarind Tree" is a breathtaking journey through the depths of human connection, resilience, and the enduring power of friendship. Alam's poignant narrative reminds us that even in the face of heartbreak and adversity, we have the capacity to find beauty and meaning, weaving threads of hope and love into the intricate tapestry of our lives.

(Note: Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the eARC. This is an honest review.)

"Like the powerful waves that must reach the shore and crash onto the beach, the past too must bubble up from within us, up and out through our lips. We must speak of it instead of allowing the pressure to build inside."

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:
This one caught me by the description, and I'm so glad I read it. Not only was it an interesting story, I learned some historical facts from it, which, of course, had me doing more research to learn more about the Partition.

The dual timelines keep you wanting to learn more about the effects Rozeena's family and friends experienced after fleeing India to Pakistan. We see how devastating pasts can continually effect decisions made in the future and how those decisions can come back to the forefront.

Rozeena's successes are affected by the devastation of the fleeing and losing her brother, and the past of what her friends did until she finally came to terms with them. I loved how the author told the story, which had me wanting to know what Rozeena and her friends' secret was from the past. Then, moving to the present day to see how the two would come together as Rozeena tries to help her friends relative while also dealing with what happened in their pasts.

This is a strong debut novel, and I am looking forward to more from this author in the future!

This lovely novel about friendship takes place in parallel timelines: one in 1964 and one in 2019. Rozeena, Haaris, Aalya and Zohair are best friends as children, despite their family’s status in Karachi society. They have fun together and maybe some romance blooming in the group… All of that comes to a head one fateful night in 1964 when their lives are forever changed.

In present day (2019) Rozeena is contacted by Haaris after 50 years to take his granddaughter, Zara, on as an intern after a family tragedy. A lovely friendship blooms between Zara and Rozeena. But Zara’s questions about the past being back painful memories for Rozeena and secrets that she’d rather stay buried in the past.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and appreciated how it shows the impact that the India/Pakistan partition had on those who lived there and migrated during that time. My own grandparents were part of that migration in 1947 and I wish I had asked them more details about their experience. The characters are developed based on each of their family’s experiences during the migration and the trauma that lingered into the newer generations. I also am a sucker for unlikely friendships between young and old so I loved that aspect of it as well. And, I found it to be a good flow of how the story of the past was slowly revealed in bits and pieces.

Thank you to Netgalley and GP Putnam and Sons for an early review copy of this novel. This one hits the shelves on 8/15/23.

Under the Tamarind Tree by Nigar Alam is an absolutely brilliant novel that showcases the after effects of colonization even after generations. Set in Karachi, this book has two timelines of 1964 and 2019. There are parallels in both stories that make this book even more compelling.

Rozeena is a retired pediatrician in her 80s, and one day, she receives a call that shocks her because this person has gone no contact for a very long time. He was a friend. She goes into memory lane, and some memories are painful. Some things were assumed, and decisions were taken without knowing the full facts. Four friends and their lives change in the course of a week.

I really loved this book. Being an Indian, I know what a toll the Partition was on people from both India and Pakistan. The absolute trauma in both countries is something that is still felt today, and the author has done an amazing job in plainly stating the facts of the Radcliffe line and how the biggest human migration in history took place. The prose is simple, this story is simple , but the impact of this book is powerful. I will be looking forward to reading more books from this author.

Thank you, Penguin Group Putnam @putnambooks and Netgalley, for this book. All the opinions are my own.

CW: loss of a loved one, grief, references to sexual and physical abuse.

Four childhood friends grow up in Karachi, Pakistan. On the cusp of adulthood, a tragedy occurs that will change their lives forever. This is a beautifully written, deeply poignant love story. The story flips between 1964 and 2019, and has a distinctive mood with all the cultural references to Pakistan. The society and its food, clothing, flora, traditions, history. It’s all there as well as the customs that play such a big role in the narrative. You think you know which way the plot is going, yet it still surprises. So, if you like literary fiction and learning about other cultures, you’re sure to love this novel. 4.5 stars

(3.5, rounded to 4)

Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam for allowing me to read this ARC!

Content Warning: violence, death, misogyny, sexual assault, colonization.

In 2019, Rozeena is haunted by memories of her past. Out of her three childhood friends -- Haaris, Aalya, and Zohair -- she is the only one who still lives in Karachi, the place her parents fled during the Partition of India in 1947. Although she's done her best to put the events of 1964 behind her, she still fears her only son discovering the truth of his background, and so it suits her just fine to stay away from everyone in her old life. But when Haaris calls her all the way from America, pleading for her to take his granddaughter under her wing, Rozeena is thrown back into the midst of a time she doesn't want to remember -- and its consequences that are still echoing to the present day.

Before Under the Tamarind Tree, I had only the vaguest understanding of India's Partition in 1947. It was a catastrophic event, engineered by British colonizers who were both too ignorant and too cruel to care for the millions of people under their watch, culminating in violence, confusion and, ultimately, the loss of between 200,000 to two million lives, and the displacement of nearly twenty million. Alam does a great job of weaving the events of 1947, 1964, and 2019 together, and although the primary focus of the novel is on Rozeena and her friends, the backdrop of the Partition and its trauma is ever-present, the catalyst that leads to many future tragedies -- some of which Rozeena, Haaris, Zohair and Aalya will never recover from.

The setting of Karachi is beautifully rendered, and despite the fact that I've never even set foot out of Texas, Alam's descriptions of it are so real that I could almost imagine myself there. She takes time and consideration to perfect the background, and Karachi itself almost becomes a character, a sort of living, breathing being that is utilized by the story and characters. Even if you have very little prior understanding of Pakistan, its culture, religions, or its history, Alam does an excellent job of providing us with just enough information that it doesn't feel as if you're being spoon-fed exposition.

Our main character is Rozeena; the book is entirely from her perspective, the other characters creating a sort of web around her, with her squarely in the middle of it all. In spite of Rozeena's narration and the many problems that she faces, however, she remains distant, and it was sometimes difficult to connect with her. It might be in part due to the rather simplistic writing style, particularly in the modern day, which is told through present-tense -- never a great vehicle for conveying emotion, if you ask me. I particularly liked the relationship between Aalya and Rozeena, and their efforts at reconnecting as they grow from children into young adults, and I would've actually liked to see more of it.

Under the Tamarind Tree is an exploration of regret. Rozeena is constantly plagued by guilt from her past, unable to let go of the mistakes she made that changed the directions of their lives forever. The brightest spot of the book is the blossoming relationship between Rozeena and Haaris's granddaughter, who offers her a way out of self-loathing and depression. She sees in this girl a chance at making things right, of healing the wounds that she and Aalya experienced as young women, and it is this beautiful bond that centers the story and, in the end, makes it feel complete.

I always try to seek out literature about Partition whenever possible, because as a Westerner, I feel like we've never spoken about it once in classrooms. Under the Tamarind Tree jumps between time periods to show the ripple effects of tragedy and conflict in people's lives, and this is such a well-written novel. There's a deeply complex storyline and characters contained within these pages, and I think it's such a good read for those who are interested in the plot or subject matter.

I was interested to read this story set in Pakistan, touching on Partition, as I knew very little about this setting or this tragic part of history. known as Partition. This book taught me so much about the feelings of displacement that must have been felt throughout Pakistan and India. The partition caused Muslims to flee to Pakistan and Hindus to flee to India - in many cases leaving their whole life behind and being forced to relocate and start anew.

This dual-timeline story revolves around four friends - Rozeena, Haaris, Aayla and Zohair. The reader is introduced to Rozeena in a current timeline while her memories take the reader back to a neighborhood in Karachi, Pakastan where the friends met while growing up. Some of the families are in this neighborhood following Partition, while other families are well established here. The friends' families are of various financial means. Central to this story are the long-standing beliefs and traditions of Indian families. As one tragic event snowballs, secrets and loyalties are tested.

I really enjoy reading about different cultures. There were so many aspects to this story that would have happened so differently in my growing up years. It was so helpful to have the context that the author provided in order to understand the family and community pressures. The mystery of the tragedy and how it affected each of the friends unwinds slowly through memories.

As a slow burn novel with explorations of grief, expectations, friendship, atonement and forgiveness, this is a melancholic and what I would call more "serious" read. It was beautifully written but I do wish there was a little more character development for each of the friends. I recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group, G.P. Putnam and Sons for the ARC to read and review. Put date: 8.15.23

A beautiful story about 4 teenagers growing up in post-partition Karachi. Rozeena, Haaris, Aalya and Zohair all live in post-partition Karachi, Pakistan. They come from different economic backgrounds but they are the best of friends. Until tragedy strikes and their lives are changed irrevocably. The story is told in two timelines - 1960s and 2019. The novel aptly brings out the devastating effects of the Partition of India into two separate countries - a hasty exercise inefficiently executed by the British administration resulting in untold loss of lives and property on both sides. It begins with Rozeena's family fleeing angry rioting mobs unfortunately resulting in the death of her younger brother. This one event has reverberating consequences on Rozeena's mindset and her decisions in later life. Her actions directly/indirectly affect the lives of her friends. It's a beautiful story told in a lucid enthralling manner. It aptly captures the societal norms, requisites and restrictions in the Pakistani society especially for women and those of poorer means. The book then switches to 2019 where a now aging Rozeena and Haaris are trying to come to terms with the secrets of their past and how best to bring them to closure. Truly an engrossing tale, I was unable to put it down till the end.

Thank you Netgalley, Nigar Alam and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC, the opinions that follow are my own.

A must read! Entertaining and educational in the most delightful way! I don’t usually pick up books like this but I was drawn to the description and the cover. I’m so happy I requested this book!

This story will be sticking with me for a while and I don’t intend to spoil it for anyone. I will say, check the content warnings as the subject matter is not light and deeply worth reading!

Wow, such a sweet story. I loved pretty much every character in this book! I loved the dual timelines. I was intrigued since the beginning, with the mysterious part of the story. I also loved that there were so many relationships throughout the book-family and non-family related. I am not really familiar with Pakistan or their history or culture, so it was really interesting to read about that. I will definitely be recommending this to my family and friends!

A beautiful story about the lasting impacts of childhood secrets. Although this story took me a little to settle into, the second half was absolutely worth waiting for. These four friends were faced with such difficult decisions, and my heart broke for them. I also really enjoyed learning about life during the Partition-- a topic I knew absolutely nothing about prior to this book. A solid debut from Alam!

"Under the Tamarind Tree" by Nigar Alam is the first book I've read about the Partition-when the British withdrew their rule from the subcontinent and divided it into India and Pakistan-from the Muslim perspective rather than the Hindu perspective, though the historical realities of the Partition are more of a backdrop to the story than the focus of the book. The plot follows the lives of a family and their neighbors as they cope with a multitude of tragedies and strive to conceal life-altering secrets. The writing is good, but the story unfolded a bit too slowly for my taste. It kept my interest, but I wouldn't describe it as a page-turner and I didn't feel compelled to stop everything and read it straight through. I usually really enjoy stories told through dual timelines, but I found myself confused at times with this one; I think there was just too much going on and perhaps a chronological telling of the story may have worked better for me.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

This story was beautiful - heartbreaking at times and often infuriating (characters making choices we'd rather them not, and Sweetie was just maddening) but ultimately, the story of four friends in Pakistan after many of their lives were so upended after Partition was uplifting. That anyone could survive an event like that and come out with positives in their life was touching.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my copy of Under the Tamarind Tree by Nigar Alam in exchange for an honest review. It published August 15, 2023.
Wow, I found this book to be so hard to put down! I found the subject matter, post-Partition, to be utterly fascinating. I have not read much from this perspective, and I found it so important.
Another thing I really enjoyed about this book is the duel timelines. I appreciated and enjoyed both stories, and was kept guessing all along how things would go.
This is definitely worth the read!

This is an ambitious book set. Following dual timelines exploring the lives of two lovers who never were in 1960s Karachi and jumping ahead to the present, this is a tale that unwinds slowly, each reveal adding a little more flavor and understanding. I was happily surprised that all my assumptions turned out to be incorrect, making the twists and turns unexpected and interesting.

Alam stated he wanted to bring this era of Pakistani history to light from the point of view of people like his own parents. Set in the recent aftermath of the British relinquishment of the subcontinent and the horrific violence that followed the hasty separation of India and Pakistan into independent nations, the location becomes almost another character, especially the flora.

The writing is engaging, however I do wish that the characters felt a little richer. There are moments when the purpose of the characterization intended by the author overshadows the actual character, limiting the depth of both the story and the character.

I was especially interested in this because I know so little about Partition. That’s kind of a small part of the story here (although it does have a huge effect on the story). I enjoyed that this gave me insight into a culture I don’t see a lot of in books, although I admit some of it confused me at the beginning. I was also super frustrated but just because I hate how the world was - and still is in so many ways.

I truly enjoyed this and it was very sad but overall told a great story about sacrifice and love - for family, friends, and lovers. I only wish some of the past stuff was revealed a little sooner because it took until about 70% of the way in before I had a good grasp of what was happening. Since it’s not exactly a mystery, I would have liked a few pieces sooner just so I could feel invested earlier. But at the end, all my questions were answered and I’d come to care for all the characters immensely.

As it says on the cover, this is a book in which characters live with secrets. The story is presented in different timelines jumping from 2019, to 1964 and during the partition.

The main characters have a hidden past, secrets kept for years, holding their painful memories from partition.
Rozeena the main character is atoning with what happened more than 50 years ago.

I would like to have seen more development on the characters, I couldn’t connect as much with them as I would like but I approached what the novel showed me about the stories behind all the people that had to leave their homes and be relocated.

What I appreciated most was learning a little about this time of independence and mass migration, it was painful to learn about what happened during partition, all those deaths and violence, after the division.

After finishing the book I watched videos about this period and I love when a book takes you to another. Now I added more novels set in this time. To me, this was a good introduction to learn about this time.

Thank you Putnam Books and Netgalley for this e-ARC.
Pub date:August 15th,2023

I went into this book knowing nothing of the history of the Partition. The main character, Rozeena's family had to flee to Karachi, Pakistan following the partition and her brother lost his life trying to save her. Rozeena has worked hard to become a doctor. She struggles to create a practice as she and her friends (Haaris, Aalya and Zohair) try to find their way in their mid 20's. Class issues, family beliefs and superstitions create obstacles for all of the friends. A death at a party that they all attend changes their lives forever. This story was beautiful - heartbreaking at times and often infuriating (characters making choices we'd rather them not, #NETGALLEY #UNDERTHETAMARINDTREE