Book Review: The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Kahn
The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Hardcover Release Date: January 29, 2019
Paperback Release Date: June 2, 2020
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Description:
Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali has always been fascinated by the universe around her and the laws of physics that keep everything in order. But her life at home isn’t so absolute.
Unable to come out to her conservative Muslim parents, she keeps that part of her identity hidden. And that means keeping her girlfriend, Ariana, a secret from them too. Luckily, only a few more months stand between her carefully monitored life at home and a fresh start at Caltech in the fall. But when Rukhsana’s mom catches her and Ariana together, her future begins to collapse around her.
Devastated and confused, Rukhsana’s parents whisk her off to stay with their extended family in Bangladesh where, along with the loving arms of her grandmother and cousins, she is met with a world of arranged marriages, religious tradition, and intolerance. Fortunately, Rukhsana finds allies along the way and, through reading her grandmother’s old diary, finds the courage to take control of her future and fight for her love.
A gritty novel that doesn’t shy away from the darkest corners of ourselves, The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali provides a timely and achingly honest portrait of what it’s like to grow up feeling unwelcome in your own culture and proves that love, above all else, has the power to change the world.
Rukhsana Ali is a senior in high school. She just got accepted to Caltech – and so did her girlfriend Ariana. She can’t wait to get away. Her strict Muslim parents don’t know she’s gay and she needs to keep it that way because they would never understand. Unfortunately, her mom walks in on her and Ariana. Rukhsana’s parents send her to Bangladesh, hoping to “cure” her. This is where the story gets horrifying. The lengths that Rukhsana’s parents go through to try and turn her straight are astounding but I don’t doubt that some children are put through all of the things that Rukhsana endured in real life.
Another thing that seems plausible and yet was extremely frustrating is the way Ariana treats Rukhsana. I found her to be completely selfish and wondered what Rukhsana saw in her. Teenagers can be selfish and short-sighted and Ariana is a prime example. The last bit of the book required a fair amount of suspension of disbelief. I wasn’t too bothered by it but I can see how some people would be. I won’t say more for fear of spoilers.
If I had to guess, I would say there are not many young adult books that have an LGBT Muslim protagonist. I think that LGBT youth, especially those that are Muslim, will enjoy reading a book with a character like them. This is a book that high school libraries should have on their shelves. Recommended.
(I received a complimentary copy of this book for review.)
