A multi-generational story of Armenian immigrants to America struggling to adapt to contemporary American life whilst retaining their own cultural identity and norms. There are generational and cultural conflicts aplenty, not helped by the fact that each and every one of the characters has lost something along the way, and all of them have longings, desires and regrets to reconcile with the life they have each ended up with. It all comes to a head when Araxi, the teenage daughter of Levon and Tamar, runs away and all those around her have to confront both past and present. It’s a compelling read, one which gives insight into the history and culture of the Armenian community as a whole as well as into the day to day lives of the families themselves. The novel shifts to a new character in each chapter thus giving the reader everyone’s point of view and each strand of the narrative is slowly brought together. Touching on many themes – parenthood, immigration, assimilation, love and ambition - it’s a well-written and well-paced novel, engaging and thoughtful, and one which I very much enjoyed.

A very moving book. It was very hard to put down from the start as it was so beautifully written..