Towelhead

Description

Jasira, a teenaged Arab-American girl, is sent away by her mother to live with her father, after the mother's boyfriend begins paying her too much attention. But Jasira's father is unable to show her the affection she craves for, or to handle her feelings about her rapidly changing body. America is about to go to war with Kuwait, and Jasira becomes ever more isolated at school, and begins to look for love in all the wrong places. Mr Vuoso, a neighbour and army reservist who catches her looking at his copy of "Playboy" while she is babysitting his son, is quick to take advantage of her vulnerability.
Things look very bad for Jasira until a pregnant neighbour, Melina, offers her a lifeline, and in the novel's hilarious, and heartbreaking climax, manages to bring father and daughter, finally, a little closer to one another.

Reviews

"'Tart, sexy, and spirited, Towelhead is an appealing coming-of-age tale guided by the author's bulls-eye humour about misguided desire' US Elle; 'Screwball sharp...an arch, coyly sexy book that's as nervy as its title... Erian gives this gutsy book its full share of such unthinkable questions' New York Times; 'Erian has a distinctive talent for writing embarrassing stories... [her] shocking yet subtle prose turns readers into voyeurs instead of witnesses' Time Out 'How can a book about such horrific things be so laugh-out-loud funny? How can a book that seems so lightly done go so far into the dark? Towelhead is totally engrossing, very witty and sharp, and written with the kind of skill that actually does the impossible and preserves a crucial innocence in the full blast of political and sexual corruption' Ali Smith, Booker-shortlisted author of The Accidental"

Author description

Alicia Erian was born in the US to Arab American parents. She is the author of the acclaimed collection of stories, THE BRUTAL LANGUAGE OF LOVE. TOWELHEAD is her first novel.