Irfan MasterRecensioni

This is the heart-wrenching story of Bilal, who wants to create an atmosphere of peace for his dying father, as India is rocked by tension in the countdown to the Partition. The story touches on themes of friendship, prejudice, tolerance, truth, and a son’s love for his father. Glossary, Maps, Author’s Note.

What a quirky book. Tells the story of Adam who lives with his mother and sister and his grandfather in a housing commission estate in the UK. His father has beaten him and his mother and has caused brain damage in his little sister Farah so she cannot talk, only use sign language. When his grandfather dies in hospital, he wills his heart to be transplanted into William, the man who shared a ward with him. William finds out who's heart he has and goes to visit Adam's family and becomes a family friend as he feels part of their dynamic.
Meanwhile Adam feels distanced from his mother because every time she looks at him, she sees her violent ex-husband and so never hugs him or smiles at him. Adam finds solace in his art work and spends his time drawing what he sees around him, the girl he fancies Lalia and also graffiting some abandoned trains.
This is a story about friendship, family and love. It has a powerful ending with Adam's mother standing up to the gossiping community members in the Community Hall. very different book.

I really enjoyed this novel. Obviously YA but dealing with important themes - style not unlike David Almond

Bilal’s father is dying, and he doesn’t want his father to know the problems being faced by his beloved India. Partition is coming, but Bilal hopes if his father is kept ignorant of the news, he will die peacefully and not from a broken heart. He plans to lie about what is going on in the village and the world to make sure this happens.

Read the rest of my review at: http://shouldireaditornot.wordpress.com/2012/09/03/a-beautiful-lie-irfan-master/

Set in India in 1947 at the time of Partition. Although the backdrop is this key event in Indian history, the novel touches on the importance of tolerance, love and family, as Bilal goes to extreme lengths to hide the political situation from his dying father. At times violent, exciting and thought provoking.

Bilal té el pare molt malalt, terminal, i no vol que sàpiga que l'Índia està a punt de dividir-se per qüestions religioses. Ell, amic de tothom, no ho pot entendre, i fa l'impossible perquè el seu pare no ho arribi a saber.
Està bé que retrati aquest moment de la història de l'Índia, però no té gaire ritme i es fa una mica pesat½

An incredibly powerful, heartbreaking story set in India in 1947 in the days leading up to the partition of the country. Thirteen-year-old Bilal goes to elaborate lengths to keep his dying father from hearing the news about the imminent division of his beloved Mother India. Particularly poignant is the depiction of the unraveling social fabric as tensions between Hindus and Muslims escalate into open hostilities. An exceptional historical novel.