Description

An unforgettable story of motherhood, obsession and ambition
‘Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting. Tara is a glorious creation, crackling with life and aspiration and sensuality’ Kamila Shamsie, author of Home Fire

‘A lacerating novel by a writer of great insight and deep compassion’ Mohsin Hamid, author of The Last White Man

In a village in rural Pakistan, Tara is waiting and watching. The smell of dung and dust hangs over her world. She is desperate to leave the petty life of the village and escape the iron grip of her violent, unpredictable brother. Marrying a middle-class accountant allows her to escape to the capital, but she soon finds that life as a respectable housewife is not sufficient either. She wants what the rich mothers at her children’s school have. She wants what their husbands have. But can she truly shake her past? And what of the menacing spectre of her brother, a reminder of the threads that tie her to the life she left behind?

Set against a hypnotic, oppressive backdrop of political violence and natural disaster, A Splintering traces the class struggle of a woman stuck between province and metropolis, between motherhood and ambition. Disquieting and utterly gripping, it is an extraordinary achievement by Dur e Aziz Amna, an exploration of a complex and unforgettable character who will risk everything to carve out a life of her own.

Publisher Review

‘A riveting read that boldly calls out patriarchy in Pakistan and beyond’ Mohammed Hanif, author of Red Birds ‘I am constantly amazed by how relentless this is. When you think it’s gone too far it goes further. And I love it for that’ Deepti Kapoor, author of Age of Vice ‘An intoxicating, high-voltage mix of female rage, economic ambition, erotic awakening, and biting disdain aimed at the expectations faced by women in contemporary Pakistani society, Tara’s voice will sear itself in your consciousness like the scowl of a convict facing the firing squad. Never have my sympathies been so roused, tested, and provoked by a character both heroic and tragic, wily and cornered, raw and charred… a magnificent sophomore novel, replete with Amna’s trademark lyricism and sparkling wit’ Aube Rey Lescure, author of River East, River West ‘Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting. Tara is a glorious creation, crackling with life and aspiration and sensuality’ Kamila Shamsie, author of Best of Friends ‘A lacerating novel by a writer of great insight and deep compassion’ Mohsin Hamid, author of The Last White Man ‘A Splintering is the dizzying kind of novel that puts every part of your brain in competition with the rest. It’s a page-turner, it’s a vivid chronicle of family life, it’s an intimate exploration of selfhood. And more than anything it’s an examination of the structures society builds up around us. In harrowing detail, Amna shows us how those forces – tradition, patriarchy, capitalism – deform and fracture our inner lives so profoundly that imagination becomes as much a prison as it is a key. I’m in awe of this book’ Chris Knapp, author of States of Emergency ‘A gripping, troubling, masterful story. I could not put it down’ Aysegul Savas, author of The Anthropologists ‘A rare novel that dares to ask, what if women wanted more? … a sharp, unsentimental take on ambition, class and desire… encountering a character who will do everything in their power to change the trajectory of their life is intoxicating and refreshing. It makes it difficult to put the book down or to interrupt the flow of Tara’s lunging towards a greater life… Amna’s work stands out in the South Asian literary landscape’ Dawn