A Small Fortune

by Rosie Dastgir

Overview

A smart debut novel that explores the complexities of cultural differences, family loyalties, and what is lost in translation.

Harris, the patriarch of his large extended family in both England and Pakistan, has unexpectedly received a “small fortune” from his divorce settlement with an English woman. As a devout Muslim, Harris views this sum as a “burden of riches” that he must unload on someone else as quickly as possible. But deciding which relative to give it to proves to be a burden of its own, and soon he has promised it both to his extremely poor cousins in Pakistan and to his Westernized, college student daughter. In a rash bout of guilt and misunderstanding, Harris signs the entire sum away to the least deserving, most prosperous cousin of all, exacerbating a tricky web of familial debt and obligation on two sides of the world.

With insight, affection, and a great gift for character and story, Rosie Dastgir immerses us in a rich, beautifully drawn immigrant community and a complex extended family. She considers the challenges between relatives of different cultural backgrounds, generations, and experiences—and the things they have to teach one another. A Small Fortune offers an affecting look at class, culture, and the heartbreak of misinterpretation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781594631511
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/07/2013
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Rosie Dastgir was born in England to a Pakistani father and an English mother. She was educated at Oxford University and received an MFA in film from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. She lives in London.

What People are Saying About This

Saïd Sayrafiezadeh

Beautiful, intelligent and poignant. With honesty and insight, Rosie Dastgir reveals the triumphs and tragedies—not only when East meets West—but when any of us attempt to forge our own identity beneath the weight of history, culture and that most terrifying obstacle of all—family. (Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, author of When Skateboards Will Be Free)

Gautaum Malkani

Touchingly elegant with a sense of humor. Dastgir reminds us why stories about the many different kinds of British Asian experience continue to make for compelling reading. With characters so real that they defy stereotypes, she cleverly and movingly demonstrates how haplessness and fallibility can bolster one's humanity. (Gautaum Malkani, author of Londonstani)

From the Publisher

“In her debut novel, Rosie Dastgir weaves a vivid and delightful saga about an extended family of Pakistani immigrants. . . . [A Small Fortune] is funny, poignant, true and sad, and I was enthralled.”—The Minneapolis Star Tribune

"But the beauty in Dastgir's novel, and the reason you won't be able to put it down, is her ability to get to the heart of the immigrant struggle."—Bust

"A tweedy Pakistani divorcé and his alarmingly self-possessed daughter are tested by an unexpected windfall."—Vogue

"This charming debut offers rich insights into the complexities of immigrant life in England. . . . This charming debut offers rich insights into the complexities of immigrant life in England."—Library Journal

"Among the strengths of [her] writing are the naturalistic flow of her dialogue and her ear for the Yorkshire lilt. Her screenwriting flair also shines through in the deft jump-cuts between Lahore, Whitechapel and Yorkshire, and the arresting images of London's urban decay. . . . Particularly perceptive about first-generation immigrants’ preoccupations with minute class signifiers.”—Times Literary Supplement

“In Dastgir’s delicious debut novel, a clan of Pakistani immigrants navigates the treacherous territory between two cultures in an England of curry puddles, cunning imams, and failing convenience stores. Funny, compassionate and vivid with detail.”—Nayana Currimbhoy, author of Miss Timmins’ School for Girls

“Assimilation and self-interest are the competing themes in this wickedly witty, deeply moving novel. Yet it’s humanity in all its well-intentioned ineptitude that forms the real theme here—and for which Rosie Dastgir saves her choicest prose. A whole, complex world is on display here. I couldn’t put it down.”—Lucinda Rosenfeld, author of I’m So Happy For You and (forthcoming) The Pretty One

“Beautiful, intelligent and poignant. With honesty and insight, Rosie Dastgir reveals the triumphs and tragedies—not only when East meets West—but when any of us attempt to forge our own identity beneath the weight of history, culture and that most terrifying obstacle of all—family.”— Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, author of When Skateboards Will Be Free

Lucinda Rosenfeld

Assimilation and self-interest are the competing themes in this wickedly witty, deeply moving novel. Yet it's humanity in all its well-intentioned ineptitude that forms the real theme here—and for which Rosie Dastgir saves her choicest prose. A whole, complex world is on display here. I couldn't put it down. (Lucinda Rosenfeld, author of I'm So Happy For You and (forthcoming) The Pretty One)

Nayana Currimbhoy

In Dastgir's delicious debut novel, a clan of Pakistani immigrants navigates the treacherous territory between two cultures in an England of curry puddles, cunning imams, and failing convenience stores. Funny, compassionate and vivid with detail. (Nayana Currimbhoy, author of Miss Timmins' School for Girls)

Editorial Reviews

In her debut novel, Rosie Dastgir weaves a vivid and delightful saga about an extended family of Pakistani immigrants. . . . [A Small Fortune] is funny, poignant, true and sad, and I was enthralled.”—The Minneapolis Star Tribune

"But the beauty in Dastgir's novel, and the reason you won't be able to put it down, is her ability to get to the heart of the immigrant struggle."—Bust

"A tweedy Pakistani divorcé and his alarmingly self-possessed daughter are tested by an unexpected windfall."—Vogue

"This charming debut offers rich insights into the complexities of immigrant life in England. . . . This charming debut offers rich insights into the complexities of immigrant life in England."—Library Journal

"Among the strengths of [her] writing are the naturalistic flow of her dialogue and her ear for the Yorkshire lilt. Her screenwriting flair also shines through in the deft jump-cuts between Lahore, Whitechapel and Yorkshire, and the arresting images of London's urban decay. . . . Particularly perceptive about first-generation immigrants’ preoccupations with minute class signifiers.”—Times Literary Supplement

“In Dastgir’s delicious debut novel, a clan of Pakistani immigrants navigates the treachero's territory between two cultures in an England of curry puddles, cunning imams, and failing convenience stores. Funny, compassionate and vivid with detail.”—Nayana Currimbhoy, author of Miss Timmins’ School for Girls

“Assimilation and self-interest are the competing themes in this wickedly witty, deeply moving novel. Yet it’s humanity in all its well-intentioned ineptitude that forms the real theme here—and for which Rosie Dastgir saves her choicest prose. A whole, complex world is on display here. I couldn’t put it down.”—Lucinda Rosenfeld, author of I’m So Happy For You and (forthcoming) The Pretty One

“Beautiful, intelligent and poignant. With honesty and insight, Rosie Dastgir reveals the triumphs and tragedies—not only when East meets West—but when any of us attempt to forge our own identity beneath the weight of history, culture and that most terrifying obstacle of all—family.”— Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, author of When Skateboards Will Be Free

From the Publisher

Harris, a likable, middle-aged Pakistani émigré living in the North of England, immediately comes to life in the opening pages of this charming debut novel, as does his daughter, Alia. Unbeknownst to her father, who is separated from Alia’s British mother, Alia has dropped out of med school in London and is living with her English boyfriend. Harris’s shock at learning the truth about Alia’s circumstances, among other emotional setbacks, creates a rift between the two that takes the rest of the novel to mend. As vividly as the book begins, however, the pace drags as members of their extended family, both in England and Pakistan, enter the narrative. While the book’s strength relies on Dastgir’s insightful ability to knit together distinct yet interdependent lives—and while getting acquainted with each individual does feel worthwhile—the energy of the narrative too often slows amid stilted dialogue and multiple versions of emotional indecision. Finally, when Rashid, a close family friend, gets mixed up with radical Islamists, the plot veers toward the predictable. An absorbing conclusion reveals Dastgir’s talent, heart, and clear knack for pulling it all together. Agent: Zoe Pagnamenta. (June)

Publishers Weekly

This charming debut offers rich insights into the complexities of immigrant life in England. When Harris, a Pakistani patriarch, receives a windfall following his divorce settlement, he struggles to identify the most deserving family member to benefit from his largesse, motivated by his devout Islamic faith and his strong affection for his extended family. The humorous yet touching aftermath of his unwise decision to offer the money to a less-than-deserving cousin reveals the burdens as well as the blessings of family life. His relationships with various family members slowly deteriorate, beginning with his Westernized daughter Alia. VERDICT Dastgir's smartly written first novel entertains even as it captures the essence of the changing immigrant community and the slow urban decline of contemporary England. The story transcends fiction focused on a particular demographic, revealing struggles shared by many extended families. [See Prepub Alert, 11/21/11.]—Faye A. Chadwell, Oregon State Univ. Libs., Corvallis

Library Journal

A rambling, good-natured consideration of Pakistani immigrants to England and their evolution into Eastern Westerners. Dastgir's affable debut moves out in branches, like the extended families explored in her somewhat formless story. Its central character is Pakistan-born Harris (originally the less pronounceable Haaris), whose marriage to an English woman has ended in divorce and whose ever-worsening money troubles have forced him to leave the comfortable southeast of England for the poorer north, where he runs a convenience store. The divorce settlement's lump sum could make a difference, but bad health forces Harris to rely on a local relative, leaving him deeper in his financial mess. And there's worse: Harris is compromised by his inability to help a needy relative in Pakistan; he's become involved with an attractive, independent widow; and his daughter, who has dropped out of her medical studies, seems to have a live-in boyfriend. Peripheral characters--wily entrepreneurs; a servant of Islam who falls under the influence of a dubious imam--add further facets and some clichés to the composite portrait of immigrant life, but ineffectual Harris' seemingly inexorable decline is the main topic, until averted by younger family influences. Although wryly insightful, Dastgir's consideration of the immigrant community could use a little grit to balance the benign charm.

Kirkus Reviews