I really liked this book, and thought it presented a fascinating situation (a couple who meet on the internet, but he's American, and she's from Bangladesh) and who get married. I loved most of the book, but the last third was a little frustrating, because I wasn't as invested in Amina's parents as I probably should have been, and really wanted to know what happens after - what happens to Amina? What does she accomplish with her life? Because she seems like she would do interesting things, and I loved her point of view. Amina is a young woman from a small city in Bangladesh, the only child of her parents. She is educated and works as an English tutor for rich families when she begins to use their computers for online dating, in the hopes of finding an American husband. She succeeds when she meets George, an engineer from Rochester, NY. They begin an online courtship that has its awkward starts and stops, all the time encouraged by Amina's mother. Amina is always aware that it is up to her to find a better life for herself and her parents. The story follows her past reminiscences as a child in the towns and villages of Bangladesh as well as her experience as a newly arrived immigrant in the United States. To say I "enjoyed" The Newlyweds by Nell Freudenberger is a little of an overstatement. I certainly appreciated it and was invested in the fates of the lead characters and the settings of both Bangladesh and Rochester, NY were vividly written about, which gave the novel a solid background. However, for some reason I can't really put my finger on, I think I appreciated the novel more than enjoyed it. I couldn't shake the feeling of just watching the events unfold from a distance, not really being in the world of the story with Amina and George and their respective families. I suspect that it could be the cultural differences of family and social status but I couldn't really understand many of Amina's motivations. On the one hand she is a very independent, level headed woman and on the other she is immature and still very dependent on her parents and the opinions of her extended family and friends. There were aspects to her character that I found incongruous with her actions which, while realistic in some respects, for some reason did not ring true in this story.Overall, the prose was vivid and descriptive and Freudenberger is great at setting the scene and I'd recommend this book to people who want to read a story that describes Southeast Asia well (I assume!) or anyone who is interested in the modern immigrant experience and its trappings.
What do You think about The Newlyweds (2012)?
This was pretty boring and I’m not sure what the point was. However, it had its moments.
—Dragonalim
Marvelous book, beautifully read by Mozhan Marno. I didn't want it to end.
—kissa
Entertaining but the lead character, Amina, seemed a bit hollow.
—Nytewulf
