The Sand Fish : A Novel from Dubai

This book is about a young girl, going into womanhood in the 1950’s in rural area of Saudi Arabia and part of her life journey, starting with the matchmaking and tutoring on how to be a wife, her life as she knows it ends rather abruptly and she is sent off to marry and become the 3rd wife of a much older man, her main job is to produce an heir. There were parts which were enjoyable, the descriptions of the water cave, in the arid mountains, the details of the roles of the women in 1950’s Saudi Arabia, the journey and arrival to Dubai. I can’t really say I had a favourite character, but in the beginning Noora was an enjoyable character, after her marriage her life changed dramatically and her character wasn’t so enjoyable, most of the characters were all a little bland once the Noora was shipped off. I found there to be little depth in the writing. It is haunting, the way women were treated in the 1950’s in the Middle East, their ways. their choices, the way of life, etc. and how they were forced to change their lives after a forced marriage, as is this case, Noora is the third wife and her sole job is to have a baby. I found the first 3rd of the book to be a little slow, even though it is not a fast paced book, and does not get faster, I enjoyed the rest of it more. There were some nice descriptions of the area where Noora was born and grew up. I was expecting more from this book. I have only given this book 3 stars. This is a historical fiction book, those readers who enjoy books from the middle east to learn about woman’s life in the 1950’s. The next book is Half of a Yellow Sun Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)