This giveaway promotion expired on September 19, 2011.
The Unique Joys of Being Published on Three Different Continents
By Moni Mohsin
My two children, aged twelve and nine, sometimes ask me which of them I love more. I tell them that they are like my two eyes – equally precious. So it is with my books. Born of my imagination, my books are also like my children and so, regardless of how well they do or how they are viewed by the world, equally beloved.
Duty Free is my third literary child. My earlier books were published in the Subcontinent and the UK. They had the same cover in both territories and were pretty much the same product. But Duty Free is different. Published a few months apart in the UK, India and Pakistan as well as America, it’s had different covers, different titles and due to the very distinct reading public each is catering to, different treatment from publishers. Not surprisingly, it has evoked different responses from readers in each place.
In the Subcontinent, where Duty Free is set, most readers are familiar with the sort of characters that people my book. My heroine – a screamingly shallow but nonetheless endearing socialite – seems to be someone many know intimately.
At parties in London, Delhi, Lahore I am often asked by Prada clad, botoxed ladies, ‘Who is she?’
‘Who is who?’
‘You know, the woman in your book. Is she so and so? I swear it’s her. I know it’s her. Now don’t deny, okay?’
Interestingly, she never reminds anyone of themselves.
Often complaining that her ‘life’s so bore,’ my heroine speaks in a uniquely Subcontinental English, peppered with misspellings (bagground, Tom Fort) and malapropisms (‘she’s a suppository of local gossip’). Though this is the spoken lingo of millions, readers in India and Pakistan are not accustomed to encountering it on the printed page. An entire book written in this chutneyfied English therefore is cause for much hilarity and surprised delight. Readers write to me in the voice of the heroine, letters and emails about their picaresque lives, which in turn surprise and delight me.
I confess I was anxious when the book came out in the UK. Would English readers understand the language? Would they get the social setting? To my great relief, they not only got the language but also understood my larger purpose. While relishing its comedic aspects they homed in on its serious under-tow. Reading headlines in newspapers about terrorism is one thing but discovering how it affects the every day lives of people who are just like oneself is quite another.
Readers ask how my friends and family manage to send their kids to school when they’re under threat from extremists. Or how we dare to go into crowded bazaars when so many have been targeted by suicide bombers. I tell them we carry on because we have to.
Since the US edition of my book is only just now coming out, I can’t yet report on American readers’ reactions. I love all three editions equally but as my heroine would say, ‘between you, me and the four walls,’ I’m most excited about this one. That’s because it’s the first time I’ve been published in the US. So as Duty Free sails out into the New World, I watch from the sidelines, anxious but hopeful.
Duty Free is perfect for book groups! Download the reader’s guide for Duty Free by Moni Mohsin.
Duty Free by Moni Mohsin – Excerpt
MONI MOHSIN is the author of the Indian bestseller The Diary of a Social Butterfly based on her hit column in Pakistan’s Friday Times and a novel, The End of Innocence. Born in Pakistan, she lives in the UK. Duty Free is her American debut.
RIFers! What’s your favorite novel or film set in India? We want to know – leave a comment!
This looks like a good one!
I would love to check this book out!
My favorite film set in India is Deepa Mehta’s film Water. Her daughter wrote a memoir about the making of the film and spoke at a Book Festival event that I helped coordinate. The film was extremely eye-opening but sad as well.
I love this program! You are truely helping others who can not afford to own their own books. Thank you for doing this!
I think that people here in the US will love this book. I would love to read this book because things that happen in other parts of the world are exciting to me. I have been to other countries and love to read about other areas espcially where I have visited.
Duty Free seems like a interesting book to read. I absolutely love the cover!
I would love to read this.
I love to read. I would really like to read this book. It sounds interesting and entertaining.
would love to read this too
!
Beneath a Marble Sky was recommended by a co-worker and I was impressed. I couldn’t put it down until I was finished.
I would love to read this! I have so many people who I share my books with and they end up after they’ve been lended from friend to family at a very small library in Iowa.
book club will love this one
Would love to read this!
I would love to read this book, I have never been to another country.I love to read, please select me.
Slumdog Millionaire was a very eye opening account of India. Really makes you thankful for life’s little luxuries that we take for granted … Like indoor toilets! Love to read and think I would enjoy Duty Free.
This seems like a very interesting book. One I would enjoy and share with my friends.
looks great!
yay
After reading “The Help”, I find it charming to read in other’s vernacular though not correct english but a popular language to many. So far haven’t received any books, but looking forward to getting my first.
Looks like an interesting read…would love this book!
Looks like such a page-turner.. Will have to ask Santa for it!
Would love to read
This looks like a great book for me. I haven’t read a good book in a while and am due for the “me time”.
Looks like a great book.
I’m looking forward to reading this.
I Love to read!! This looks like a great book!
Would love to give this one a try!!
Looks interesting!!
Great looking book cover!
looks like a great read! love the cover! hoping for a new book
This really looks like a good book, can’t wait to read it
would love to read it in its entirety.
Duty Free sounds like a really fun book to read. I like the matchmaking for the cousin idea…… you just know that will not go smoothly ………….cant wait to read it!
This looks like a very intriguing book, I would love to read it. I just finished a good book and need a new read.
This looks like a good book. Would love to read all of it.
looks like a fun book!!!
would love to read it looks like it could be interesting
This sounds very interesting, would love to read it.
your book sounds really amazing.
My favorite book/movie set in India(at least, partly) is THE NAMESAKE by Jhumpa Lahiri.
sounds like a great book. would love to read more of it.
Sounds like a good read.
Oh how I miss India!! After traveling there in 2010, I think about it regularly and long for it often. What a beautiful place, even in the hard parts…I think Slumdog Millionaire has a special spot in my heart after some time in Mumbai
Would love to read this!
My review of Duty Free is up on my blog.
http:// tributebooksmama.blogspot.com
Got book from read it foreward.I love from time to time getting books free from them..This book was hard for a average American to relate to..Americans marry more for love..Or now a days do not marry at all.Nothing like The movie Slumdog Millionare. I found this book to be very interesting.To read a book written from a different cultural perspective and social class perspective was a new experience.Thank you for the book!!I will be passing it along..
I just received Duty Free in the mail yesterday. Just started it, but am loving the fast pace, and with a character named Aunt Pussy how can it not be awesome?!? Will review it fully when I finish it.
A little inscite into a diverse culture. Funny yet poignant. I can sincerely recommend it.
A true incite into a divers culture. Funny yet grasping the protagonist’s fears. A must read
Humor this English teacher… please? Misspellings, puns, and wit…
thank you for choosing me!!! i will start duty free tonight and let you know how it is. i love you guys!!!
Looks very interesting!
Review of ‘Tender Hooks’ by Moni Mohsin: If you can get used to the grammatical and spelling ‘mistakes’, you’ll enjoy this novel about a wealthy Pakistani self-centered socialite who has agreed to be a quick matchmaker for her male cousin since his mother believes that he is unable to make a suitable match on his own. The misuse of the English language written in diary form by the nameless narrator is hilarious at times, but also repetitive and irritating at times. The narrator’s marriage has troubles of its own mostly due to her social-climbing and her being so socially active. Her husband seems to be the only family member who is grounded. He is wealthy enough to be able to support his quirky, but lovable wife’s glamorous lifestyle. All this is going on amid the Pakistani war with its bombings, terrorists, etc. I found the satire aspects easy to identify and the novel to be fast-paced. You will be looking into a different culture with its customs and concerns which are always educational to me. This novel was provided to me by Read It Forward free of charge.
I am reading this book now. It’s funny, satirical, and altogether a great read. Thanks!
Looks like a great read!
I received my copy of Duty Free by Moni Mohsin from Read It Forward. I wish I could say I loved it, but I did not. It is a nice, fluffy read and an interesting look at Pakistani culture. The main character is likeable and yet unlikeable, but then – aren’t we all at times? She has family loyalty – she tries to help her aunt find a suitable match for her cousin, but Auntie doesn’t make it easy. And our heroine (are we are ever given her name?) has to face her own prejudices as well. What I did not like about the book was the overreliance on malapropisms and “misspellings”. At first, since it was an ARC, I thought it was just unedited, but eventually realized it was supposed to be that way. For me, it really detracted from the flow of the book. I could hear the character’s voice clearly enough without all of that. Just between you and me and the four walls, the book would have been much more enjoyable with a little less of it. I am grateful for the opportunity to read it, though. I work in a library and will pass it along to one of my coworkers.
Hello, everyone! Finished Duty Free over the weekend and loved it! Check out my review! Go to my blog at thewriteedge.wordpress.com and click on “BookEnds” at the top. Have a great day!
I was so excited when I received the book “Duty Free” by Moni Mohson from Read It Forward, but incredibly disappointed with the book. It didn’t draw me in like I had hoped it would. It was awkward and the misspellings and slang were more irritating than intriguing.
Thank you Read It Forward for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I got this book from Read it forward – THANK YOU! -
It took me a little bit to realize that the spelling mistake were intentional, but the book is really catching, and I could not put it down. It is funny and interesting, and I probably would not have picked it up on my own, if it weren’t for read it forward. Thanks!
the book was ok.. I finished it but it was not one of those books that I couldn’t put down. The purposeful misspellings were annoying and distracting. I couln’t stand the main character.. which is probably why I didn’t really enjoy or care about this book. I have already passed it on. Thank you Read it Forward for letting me read this book!
When I first started reading this book I was put off by the slang, but was determined to read the entire book. After getting used to the format I found it interesting to learn about the cultural differences. Thanks RIF for another distinctive read!
This book was very interesting. I found it to be a good read. It was a little hard to understand. It was written from the perspective of a Pakistani woman and was harder for an American to understand. In America we marry for love and the whole book was about the main character’s quest for a bride for her cousin. They were to be married in the traditional way of their people in an arranged marriage. The book ends with a wedding. I also found the religious beliefs of the main character hard to understand. They believe in curses and mysticism. I did enjoy the book and would recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about another culture.
I just finished reading Moni Moshin’s new novel Duty Free.
I found it a delightful read. It was funny and painted an interesting picture of life in Pakistan. I really liked the malapropisms. I liked the story line as well written from the perspective of a wealthy Pakistani self-centered woman who thinks she is high society and flaunts all the latest fashions and is in the know all the time. It is fun to follow her as she agrees to be a matchmaker for a male cousin. Based on the fact that his wife ran away with jewels, the family car, etc. his mother believes he needs to be fixed up with a girl of the right bagground. And so the adventures unfold. A quick book to read.
Thank you.
I like to read it