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Beauty
Beauty - in both name and appearance - is a twenty-year-old Bangladeshi, back in
England having disgraced her family by fleeing an abusive arranged marriage. Forced onto
the jobseeker's treadmill and under extreme domestic pressure, she cracks and runs away.
Her encounters with officialdom, fellow claimants, and strangers in the city streets,
complicated by the restrictions and comfort of her language and culture, place her at the
mercy of such unlikely helpers as Mark, a friendly, Staffordshire bull terrier-breeding exoffender,
and Peter, a middle-class underachiever on the rebound from a bitter relationship.
With determination and good humour, Beauty moves ever closer to making her choice
between family duty and personal freedom. All the while, however, her brothers are
searching for her across town. Can she make the choice herself, before she's forced to?
A sharply rendered, compassionate and challenging portrait of a fragmented, multicultural
urban England.
England having disgraced her family by fleeing an abusive arranged marriage. Forced onto
the jobseeker's treadmill and under extreme domestic pressure, she cracks and runs away.
Her encounters with officialdom, fellow claimants, and strangers in the city streets,
complicated by the restrictions and comfort of her language and culture, place her at the
mercy of such unlikely helpers as Mark, a friendly, Staffordshire bull terrier-breeding exoffender,
and Peter, a middle-class underachiever on the rebound from a bitter relationship.
With determination and good humour, Beauty moves ever closer to making her choice
between family duty and personal freedom. All the while, however, her brothers are
searching for her across town. Can she make the choice herself, before she's forced to?
A sharply rendered, compassionate and challenging portrait of a fragmented, multicultural
urban England.
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2009
5 people are currently reading
181 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
January 20, 2012
I'd had this book on the shelf for a while and kept putting off reading it as it reeked of middle class guilt and 'right on' liberalism, which couldn't have been further from the truth. Mr Selbourne was the first author on the writing course that I'm currently on and read from his début novel and answered questions about it and writing in general, which was just what I needed to get it off the shelf and give it a go.
The book is concerned with Beauty, a young Muslim girl and Mark, someone who appears to be a white racist thug but who ultimately turns out to have more heart and moral backbone than most of the other characters in the book. The plot is quite simple, natural really and I wont go into it a great deal merely to say that Beauty runs away from her family to escape an arranged marriage whereupon she comes into contact with the wider world (Wolverhampton) and gets an insight into the mysterious world of white people.
I was surprised and inspired by this book. Surprised by how honest it was and inspired by the subject matter and Raphael's handling of it. It was so refreshing to read a contemporary book, set in this country, that sounded like the country I know and not some Guardian reading, homogenised, middle class friendly world that so many authors create. The handling of the multiple characters is done very well and the phonetic spelling of local dialects enabled me to feel that I was really there with these people.
This is a book about race, family, religion, culture but ultimately people. A great book, buy and read as soon as you can.
The book is concerned with Beauty, a young Muslim girl and Mark, someone who appears to be a white racist thug but who ultimately turns out to have more heart and moral backbone than most of the other characters in the book. The plot is quite simple, natural really and I wont go into it a great deal merely to say that Beauty runs away from her family to escape an arranged marriage whereupon she comes into contact with the wider world (Wolverhampton) and gets an insight into the mysterious world of white people.
I was surprised and inspired by this book. Surprised by how honest it was and inspired by the subject matter and Raphael's handling of it. It was so refreshing to read a contemporary book, set in this country, that sounded like the country I know and not some Guardian reading, homogenised, middle class friendly world that so many authors create. The handling of the multiple characters is done very well and the phonetic spelling of local dialects enabled me to feel that I was really there with these people.
This is a book about race, family, religion, culture but ultimately people. A great book, buy and read as soon as you can.
May 4, 2015
picked up by chance at the free bookshelf, i liked this book very much.
the story of a bangladeshi girl who leaves home to avoid a forced marriage, and find three unlikely characters who will help her on her way to finding her own path to follow. i was surprised by the ending, to be honest.
i liked the author's description of daily life in an English non-descript town, they're very accurate and vivid. the characters are well-rounded and realistic, and they develop during the story, as does the sympathy you feel for the different people (at least this is what happened to me.)
it's very hard to put down, the book's so well written that you really want to know what happens next. it's nice to also see ourselves from Beauty's point of view - the author's studied Islamic Studies, and i think in a lot of the book it shows that he knows what he's talking about.
the story of a bangladeshi girl who leaves home to avoid a forced marriage, and find three unlikely characters who will help her on her way to finding her own path to follow. i was surprised by the ending, to be honest.
i liked the author's description of daily life in an English non-descript town, they're very accurate and vivid. the characters are well-rounded and realistic, and they develop during the story, as does the sympathy you feel for the different people (at least this is what happened to me.)
it's very hard to put down, the book's so well written that you really want to know what happens next. it's nice to also see ourselves from Beauty's point of view - the author's studied Islamic Studies, and i think in a lot of the book it shows that he knows what he's talking about.
March 19, 2019
Reread 2019 :
2 years later and my feelings for this book haven't changed, still incredible and heart breaking in its own way.
4.5-5 stars.
Ok, whoo. This was such an intense and depressing read, in a really unique way. After weeks of struggling with my dear reading slump, this book just slapped me in the face. I got no way to describe what I felt while reading "Beauty". This picture of England is so depressing, yet so true. Our three main characters are very different from each other, but all are lost, struggling to find goals in life that will bring them happiness.
The reality of Muslim families is beautifully depicted, the constant pressure and abuse towards the daughters just plain sad. (Struggling for words. Hhh)
The ending is a surprise, a magnificent lesson, about how far one would go for their family.
2 years later and my feelings for this book haven't changed, still incredible and heart breaking in its own way.
4.5-5 stars.
Ok, whoo. This was such an intense and depressing read, in a really unique way. After weeks of struggling with my dear reading slump, this book just slapped me in the face. I got no way to describe what I felt while reading "Beauty". This picture of England is so depressing, yet so true. Our three main characters are very different from each other, but all are lost, struggling to find goals in life that will bring them happiness.
The reality of Muslim families is beautifully depicted, the constant pressure and abuse towards the daughters just plain sad. (Struggling for words. Hhh)
The ending is a surprise, a magnificent lesson, about how far one would go for their family.
April 28, 2011
Set against the less than glamorous urban landscape of Wolverhampton, Beauty is a gritty, fast paced novel, well written with authentic characters. The voices, complete with Wolverhampton accent are distinct and strong. Raphael Selbourne's Wolverhampton is realistic and tough, the communities portrayed have difficult lives, little money and few opportunities.
Beauty Begum is a young woman from a Bangladeshi family, on the run from an arranged marriage to a much older man. In her flight she is helped by Mark, an unlikely friend perhaps, a white ex-prisoner and breeder of dangerous dogs. His neighbour, middle class Peter, on the run from his own relationship, takes an interest in Beauty too. Beauty meets many people as she negotiates her way through the benefit system, and gets some work expierence in a care home. The people she meets, and things she sees help her to make some difficult but important decisions. It is surprising (or is it) who turns out to be reliable and safe, and whose motives are less wholesome. An excellent read, I enjoyed thoroughly.
Beauty Begum is a young woman from a Bangladeshi family, on the run from an arranged marriage to a much older man. In her flight she is helped by Mark, an unlikely friend perhaps, a white ex-prisoner and breeder of dangerous dogs. His neighbour, middle class Peter, on the run from his own relationship, takes an interest in Beauty too. Beauty meets many people as she negotiates her way through the benefit system, and gets some work expierence in a care home. The people she meets, and things she sees help her to make some difficult but important decisions. It is surprising (or is it) who turns out to be reliable and safe, and whose motives are less wholesome. An excellent read, I enjoyed thoroughly.
October 18, 2012
I think I must have read a different book from the other reviewers! I lived in the area in which the book is set for twenty years and in Wolverhampton for forty years. Throughout the first few chapters I was alternately distracted and annoyed by the inaccurate geography and the woeful attempt to capture the Wolverhampton accent compounded by irritating phonetic spelling. It was not representative of the place I knew and I was left wondering if the if the author had ever even BEEN to Wolverhampton. Added to this, poorly drawn class/ race stereotypes and the hammy dialogue were enough to make me abandon the book after a few chapters. Absolute twaddle!
January 21, 2011
This is a good read with a strong storyline. Although, it did feel more like reading a documentary of a 20 yr old bangladeshi girl iin UK, rather than fiction. The whole book is a span of 10 days, I did feel like I came to the end too soon. Nicely written, but Too much bangladeshi words.
August 13, 2017
A sad read. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be , as there was little emotion in the book on a tricky subject and that surprised me. I also didn't like the ending , after all Beauty had been through I thought she should of had a better ending.
May 22, 2010
Oops, left this one at a hotel half way through. But it wasn't very good. A lot of ham handed dialogue and a bit slow to get off the ground.
August 16, 2010
A surprise and a delight!
Read
July 30, 2011This is a very, very good book. Believable characters and a story that makes you think. It's got a deft ending too...
April 6, 2020
A thoroughly engaging read - so much so that I read the whole book in one afternoon. Beauty's story makes for a challenging read but manages to give insight into the world of another, often vilified culture, without being either sensationalistic or patronising. Beauty has been denied an education and forced into an arrange marriage in Bangladesh but has been brought back to Wolverhampton as her family's problem. She decides she will not put up with the physical abuse at home and makes an escape, where her path crosses with a staffy-breeding thug from her LearnRite course (to which she's been sent in order to keep the family's access to her benefits) who offers her his spare room. The view of different cultures and their wild preconceptions about one another cuts deep, laying bare societal division, but showing how the different factions muddle along. An eye-opening read.
November 4, 2020
This is a very different take on life as a Bangladeshi girl in a strict Muslim household coming to England. While I didn't always buy into the level of Beauty's naivety, she certainly comes to life on the page. The main characters, especially Mark, are really well realised.
The phonetic spelling is a bit distracting, and I sometimes found it difficult to follow, but it tries to capture the character's accents.
I loved the ending to this, I loved the way it challenges the concept of freedom.
The phonetic spelling is a bit distracting, and I sometimes found it difficult to follow, but it tries to capture the character's accents.
I loved the ending to this, I loved the way it challenges the concept of freedom.
April 8, 2024
In a mixed race society that is uk, interesting to find out the culture differences and how they affect people. No matter a persons colour, we all have issues. Finding solutions that make everyone happy though is never easy or rarely achievable. That said, people still should try to make the best life they can for themselves given bad situations.
September 4, 2025
Started and finished date - 28.08.25 to 31.08.25.
My rating - Three Stars.
This book was okay read but I found is book to be bit boring and I found the book to be bland. I think people who like uncommon type by Tom Hanks or I don't expect anyone to believe me by Juan Pablo Villalobos may like is book. The cover of book was fine and the writing was okay also easy follow also the ending was okay. The atmosphere was fine but it bit bland and this book full of stereotypes. The paced of plot was well structured and steady paced. The characters was okay but they little bit dull and they needed most them well flash out
My rating - Three Stars.
This book was okay read but I found is book to be bit boring and I found the book to be bland. I think people who like uncommon type by Tom Hanks or I don't expect anyone to believe me by Juan Pablo Villalobos may like is book. The cover of book was fine and the writing was okay also easy follow also the ending was okay. The atmosphere was fine but it bit bland and this book full of stereotypes. The paced of plot was well structured and steady paced. The characters was okay but they little bit dull and they needed most them well flash out
December 11, 2018
Beauty is able to escape the confines of her family with the help of a friend she made on a Job Seekers course. Unwilling to comply with the plan of an arranged marriage, she runs away but ultimately returns home on her own terms.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 4, 2019
Didn’t enjoy the style this was written in at all, made it hard to follow at times. The storyline itself threw up some interesting things to think about in terms of race and stereotypes.
Ending was complete pants.
Ending was complete pants.
May 21, 2022
This was a superb experience and I really didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I did. The setting and characters were realistic and very honest. I never expected the ending but I should have done.
June 25, 2017
So much to like about this book.
July 21, 2018
An interesting read, but my god, how many stereotypes about race and class could you possibly traffic in...
July 3, 2019
For someone unfamiliar with the various accents of Britain, it was very difficult to read what I guess was meant to be a Midlands accent in writing. Also, very disappointing ending.
June 3, 2020
Very real!
February 1, 2019
OK first of all this book is really grim. I almost put it down it was that tough to read in parts but I persevered as I was intrigued how the characters would end up intertwining.
It is very descriptive and sometimes too descriptive I would say the characters aren't there to be liked if that makes sense. The most intriguing character for me was the character of Mark who was not at all what his exterior would have you believe and I really enjoyed that turnaround.
The biggest bug bear for me was the ending, it just seemed so pointless. I get the point that the author was trying to make but I just felt like I had wasted my time in reading it once I had read what the ending was.
It is very descriptive and sometimes too descriptive I would say the characters aren't there to be liked if that makes sense. The most intriguing character for me was the character of Mark who was not at all what his exterior would have you believe and I really enjoyed that turnaround.
The biggest bug bear for me was the ending, it just seemed so pointless. I get the point that the author was trying to make but I just felt like I had wasted my time in reading it once I had read what the ending was.
June 19, 2011
I found the theme of the story in this book challenging and thought provoking - especially the fact that you shouldn't judge people by how they look but by how they behave.However, I found the writing style annoying, especially at the beginning, and this made the book difficult for me to get really into for some time - it was the story that kept me going. Interesting for me as well is the fact that this is set in Wolverhampton where I currently live. I did find the fact that it was written by a white male teacher made me dubious about it before I started.
Beauty—in both name and appearance—is a 20-year-old Bangladeshi, returned to England after having disgraced her family by fleeing an abusive arranged marriage. Forced onto the job-hunter’s treadmill and under extreme domestic pressure, she cracks and runs away. She has been told by her family for years that she is stupid and has not learned to read by the time they took her out of school when she was 14. I find it a sad indictment on our education system that I can well believe this and also that it takes a fellow late learner in reading to make her realise she can read because he teaches her in a way that makes sense to her.
Her encounters with officialdom (again unfortunately too believable from tales I have heard), fellow claimants, and strangers in the city streets, complicated by the restrictions and comfort of her language and culture, place her at the mercy of such unlikely helpers as Mark, a friendly, Staffordshire bull terrier-breeding ex-offender, and Peter, a middle-class underachiever on the rebound from a bitter relationship. With determination and good humor, Beauty moves ever closer to making her choice between family duty and personal freedom. All the while, however, her brothers are searching for her across town. Can she make the choice herself, before she’s forced to?
Despite my concerns I am pleased that I made it to the end and would recommend the book to others
Beauty—in both name and appearance—is a 20-year-old Bangladeshi, returned to England after having disgraced her family by fleeing an abusive arranged marriage. Forced onto the job-hunter’s treadmill and under extreme domestic pressure, she cracks and runs away. She has been told by her family for years that she is stupid and has not learned to read by the time they took her out of school when she was 14. I find it a sad indictment on our education system that I can well believe this and also that it takes a fellow late learner in reading to make her realise she can read because he teaches her in a way that makes sense to her.
Her encounters with officialdom (again unfortunately too believable from tales I have heard), fellow claimants, and strangers in the city streets, complicated by the restrictions and comfort of her language and culture, place her at the mercy of such unlikely helpers as Mark, a friendly, Staffordshire bull terrier-breeding ex-offender, and Peter, a middle-class underachiever on the rebound from a bitter relationship. With determination and good humor, Beauty moves ever closer to making her choice between family duty and personal freedom. All the while, however, her brothers are searching for her across town. Can she make the choice herself, before she’s forced to?
Despite my concerns I am pleased that I made it to the end and would recommend the book to others
November 1, 2014
Overall, I’ve been quite blown away by this book and this is the stand-out best piece of fiction I have read in while.
‘Beauty’ is a story of contemporary contrasts and explores the layers of society in British life. Beauty herself is a young Bangladeshi woman who is fighting against the harsh doctrines of Muslim culture laid down by her family. In escaping them, metaphorically and physically, Beauty is rescued by and finds solace with a white male member of the UK underclass – a yob, a Chav and an ex-jailbird yet a bloke who has a heart of gold who gives Beauty respect, shelter and paradoxically more care than what was previously provided by Beauty’s own blood family.
Selbourne is such a clever writer and he makes what could be a very unbelievable fated situation into something real and feasible. The strength and texture of his writing paint what is a ‘feasibly realistic’ situation for Asian women in many parts of the UK and Selbourne is able to re-create a replica portrait of many actual and hidden issues affecting UK culture now. Hold a mirror up to part of the frameworks of current inner-city and suburban culture and I imagine this could be just a fragment of what you’d get – warts, truths, dangers and all!
In a nutshell, I was gripped by the pace and readability of this work right from page one and really do applaud the author for keeping the writing style easy and totally believable. Parts of examining Asian cultures and the ways that Asian and British either do or don’t sit side by side can’t politically be the easiest thing for a writer to do yet it is performed here with flair.
It would be great to see this book referred to on a A-level examination syllabus instead of some of the far more inferior trite that appears on UK Advanced-level papers. Young people should be given more access to great fiction that actually tries to question pockets of our cracked society.
Just loved, loved, loved this book.
‘Beauty’ is a story of contemporary contrasts and explores the layers of society in British life. Beauty herself is a young Bangladeshi woman who is fighting against the harsh doctrines of Muslim culture laid down by her family. In escaping them, metaphorically and physically, Beauty is rescued by and finds solace with a white male member of the UK underclass – a yob, a Chav and an ex-jailbird yet a bloke who has a heart of gold who gives Beauty respect, shelter and paradoxically more care than what was previously provided by Beauty’s own blood family.
Selbourne is such a clever writer and he makes what could be a very unbelievable fated situation into something real and feasible. The strength and texture of his writing paint what is a ‘feasibly realistic’ situation for Asian women in many parts of the UK and Selbourne is able to re-create a replica portrait of many actual and hidden issues affecting UK culture now. Hold a mirror up to part of the frameworks of current inner-city and suburban culture and I imagine this could be just a fragment of what you’d get – warts, truths, dangers and all!
In a nutshell, I was gripped by the pace and readability of this work right from page one and really do applaud the author for keeping the writing style easy and totally believable. Parts of examining Asian cultures and the ways that Asian and British either do or don’t sit side by side can’t politically be the easiest thing for a writer to do yet it is performed here with flair.
It would be great to see this book referred to on a A-level examination syllabus instead of some of the far more inferior trite that appears on UK Advanced-level papers. Young people should be given more access to great fiction that actually tries to question pockets of our cracked society.
Just loved, loved, loved this book.
January 10, 2026
বিউটি বেগম নামে ইংল্যান্ডের এক সিলেটি বাংলাদেশি তরুণীর জীবন নিয়ে এই উপন্যাস । চৌদ্দ বছর বয়সে বাংলাদেশে নিয়ে যাকে পঞ্চান্ন বছর বয়সী এক লোকের কাছে বিয়ে দিয়ে দেয় ওর পরিবার। যে বিয়ে করে তাঁর আসল উদ্দেশ্যই ছিলো ব্রিটিশ পাসপোর্ট নিয়ে ইংল্যান্ড আসা। আর বিউটির বাবার উদ্দেশ্য ছিলো উঁচু জাতের সাথে আত্মীয়তা করে জাতে উঠা।
অনেকের কাছে এই উপন্যাসের ঘটনাগুলো বিশ্বাস করতে কষ্ট হতে পারে কিন্তু আমরা যারা বিলেতে থাকি, এখানকার বাংলাদেশি কমিউনিটির সাথে কাজ করার, তাঁদের ঘরের খবর কিছুটা জানার অভিজ্ঞতা যাদের আছে, তাঁরা জানি কতোটা বাস্তবসম্মত এই লেখা। দশ-এগারো বছর আগে পড়েছিলাম, আবার পড়লাম।
বিউটির জগত অনেকটাই আমাদের চেনা কিন্তু বিউটির সাথে সাথে এই গল্পে উঠে এসেছে মার্ক নামে একজন বেকার শ্রমিক শ্রেণীর তরুণ আর পিটার নামের একজন শিক্ষিত মধ্যবিত্ত এই দুই ব্রিটিশ পুরুষের মনোজগত, তাঁদের জীবনযাপনের চিত্র। বিউটির জীবনের এক জটিল সন্ধিক্ষণে এই দুইজনের সাথে ওর পরিচয় আর সম্পর্ক ঘিরে উপন্যাসটি এগোতে থাকে। ঘরে নির্যাতনের শিকার বিউটি, ওর পরিবার ওকে জোর করে স্বামীর কাছে পাঠাতে চায়। বাংলাদেশি সংস্কৃতির বাইরের জগতটাও ওর কাছে অচেনা। বিউটি শেষ পর্যন্ত কোথায় যাবে?
ব্রিটেনের সামাজিক পটভূমি, সমস্যা, সাংস্কৃতিক পার্থক্য আর মনোজগতের বিস্তারিত বিশ্লেষণ আছে এখানে, সংলাপ তুলনামূলক কম। তবে বিউটি নিজের সাথে নিজে কথা বলে আর প্রচুর সিলেটি আঞ্চলিক ভাষার ব্যবহার আছে এ উপন্যাসে। ২০০৯ এর প্রথম উপন্যাস হিসাবে কস্টা পুরস্কার পাওয়া বিউটি অনেকের মতো আমারো ভালো লেগেছে। মাঝে মাঝেই বিউটির কথা মনে পড়ে তাই আবার পড়লাম। এটাই লেখকের সার্থকতা যে বিষয়টা আমাকে প্রায়ই ভাবায়, মনে হয় বিউটি আমারই অতি পরিচিত কোনো চরিত্র ।
অনেকের কাছে এই উপন্যাসের ঘটনাগুলো বিশ্বাস করতে কষ্ট হতে পারে কিন্তু আমরা যারা বিলেতে থাকি, এখানকার বাংলাদেশি কমিউনিটির সাথে কাজ করার, তাঁদের ঘরের খবর কিছুটা জানার অভিজ্ঞতা যাদের আছে, তাঁরা জানি কতোটা বাস্তবসম্মত এই লেখা। দশ-এগারো বছর আগে পড়েছিলাম, আবার পড়লাম।
বিউটির জগত অনেকটাই আমাদের চেনা কিন্তু বিউটির সাথে সাথে এই গল্পে উঠে এসেছে মার্ক নামে একজন বেকার শ্রমিক শ্রেণীর তরুণ আর পিটার নামের একজন শিক্ষিত মধ্যবিত্ত এই দুই ব্রিটিশ পুরুষের মনোজগত, তাঁদের জীবনযাপনের চিত্র। বিউটির জীবনের এক জটিল সন্ধিক্ষণে এই দুইজনের সাথে ওর পরিচয় আর সম্পর্ক ঘিরে উপন্যাসটি এগোতে থাকে। ঘরে নির্যাতনের শিকার বিউটি, ওর পরিবার ওকে জোর করে স্বামীর কাছে পাঠাতে চায়। বাংলাদেশি সংস্কৃতির বাইরের জগতটাও ওর কাছে অচেনা। বিউটি শেষ পর্যন্ত কোথায় যাবে?
ব্রিটেনের সামাজিক পটভূমি, সমস্যা, সাংস্কৃতিক পার্থক্য আর মনোজগতের বিস্তারিত বিশ্লেষণ আছে এখানে, সংলাপ তুলনামূলক কম। তবে বিউটি নিজের সাথে নিজে কথা বলে আর প্রচুর সিলেটি আঞ্চলিক ভাষার ব্যবহার আছে এ উপন্যাসে। ২০০৯ এর প্রথম উপন্যাস হিসাবে কস্টা পুরস্কার পাওয়া বিউটি অনেকের মতো আমারো ভালো লেগেছে। মাঝে মাঝেই বিউটির কথা মনে পড়ে তাই আবার পড়লাম। এটাই লেখকের সার্থকতা যে বিষয়টা আমাকে প্রায়ই ভাবায়, মনে হয় বিউটি আমারই অতি পরিচিত কোনো চরিত্র ।
April 15, 2010
was given this at my writer's group, and walked home in the rain (4 miles) with it. It's now warped to buggery.
Still readable though..
...actually it's dried out quite nicely, hardly a warp at all...
read this on the beach at Newquay (went for a 60th booze up at the Headland Hotel), and it was sunny! 14 degrees!
A fast, stimulating read about a Bengali girl who runs away from home/arranged marriage and gets help from an England shirt wearing/ dog breeding ex con, and his on-his-uppers middle class neighbour (also on the 'run' from his shrill London girlfriend). Well put together with believable characters and a great sense of place - Wolverhampton. (Recently voted fifth worst place to live in the world, some places after Detroit). Selbourne gets the accent just right - the extra syllables: 'sound' becomes sou-wund (as in ''Ow am yuh?' 'Sou-wund'), the phrasing (eg when I have the book to hand), the houses and shops (I know it because my wife went to Uni there and we live down the road). The plot moves swiftly and the book is well written and funny in places. The middle class bloke spends his time off smoking weed and looking at porn. One time on his A-Z of porn he comes across CBT, and can only think of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, and clicks to discover it's Cock and Ball Torture.
Lot of dogs though...
Still readable though..
...actually it's dried out quite nicely, hardly a warp at all...
read this on the beach at Newquay (went for a 60th booze up at the Headland Hotel), and it was sunny! 14 degrees!
A fast, stimulating read about a Bengali girl who runs away from home/arranged marriage and gets help from an England shirt wearing/ dog breeding ex con, and his on-his-uppers middle class neighbour (also on the 'run' from his shrill London girlfriend). Well put together with believable characters and a great sense of place - Wolverhampton. (Recently voted fifth worst place to live in the world, some places after Detroit). Selbourne gets the accent just right - the extra syllables: 'sound' becomes sou-wund (as in ''Ow am yuh?' 'Sou-wund'), the phrasing (eg when I have the book to hand), the houses and shops (I know it because my wife went to Uni there and we live down the road). The plot moves swiftly and the book is well written and funny in places. The middle class bloke spends his time off smoking weed and looking at porn. One time on his A-Z of porn he comes across CBT, and can only think of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, and clicks to discover it's Cock and Ball Torture.
Lot of dogs though...
March 28, 2010
Beauty starts off slowly and a bit confusingly, but once I got past page 30, I finished the novel within the next 24 hours. It may seem like just another novel in the line of White Teeth or Brick Lane, but Selbourne does something different with the discussion of welfare and government assistance. Credit is due to Selbourne for not romanticizing the poor, which is a trend I fully expected after the success of the movie Slumdog Millionaire. All of the four main characters were well-written and developed, and their interactions seemed natural and not forced by Selbourne. I'm not willing to say that Beauty is classic literature on par with White Teeth, but it did strike me as more genuine and worthy of praise than Brick Lane. Hopefully, it will find an audience in America soon.
August 5, 2014
A really pleasant surprise, this one. It's always a pleasure when characters behave in ways that are both unexpected and yet at the same time true to their nature as it's been set up by the author - no one conforms to stereotype, and yet the book isn't ostentatiously defying stereotypes either. Selbourne seems to have thought through the full reality of each of his characters in a way I find impressive, so that they really seem like people, not illustrations for a tidy narrative about East meets West or Man meets Woman or Tradition Is Hard, as I initially feared. Worth reading just for for the exemplary way it gently shrugs off of expectations.
October 19, 2011
I didn't like anything much about this book-the characters annoyed me, the plot bored me and the story was depressing. A few reviewers said that it paints a realistic portrayal of English life in a crap town-well if that is true then I never want to live anywhere as soul destroying as that or meet such dreadful people as this book showed me. The only laugh I got was the amusing dialogue when the guy was yelling at his dog-the way it was written amused me but sadly I can't say that it saved the book from being total rubbish.
July 29, 2011
Raphael Selbourne managed to create an amazing cast, with believable characters you actually care about. For this reason I found it very hard to put down the book and always wanted to know what's about to happen next. The only thing I'm a bit dissatisfied with is the ending, I think it comes a bit too abruptly and isn't quite up there with the rest of the book. I think I'd have preferred a more open ending, instead of one that tries to resolve everything in just a few pages.
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