"The writing is sharp, beautiful, very evocative. The characters pop
off the page and are instantly recognizable. Noomi is so achingly human
and alive. I love the subtlety of Patel's hand in the way she depicts
Noomi and her world in Mirror Made of Rain. Everything feels so lush
and gorgeous as the story at the heart of the novel emerges and
eventually coheres to devastating effect." --Brandon Taylor, author of
Real Life and Filthy Animals
"A personal, empathetic view on mothers who society has deemed
'failures'" --NPR
Despite an embarrassing, alcoholic mother, Noomi Wadia is loathe to
change her own hard-partying ways simply because it's what's expected in
Kamalpur high society. As her peers begin to marry and her social
obligations become more fraught, she finds herself under constant
scrutiny at summer parties of the city's upper crust.
With her options in her hometown growing increasingly limited, Noomi
leaves for Mumbai and quickly becomes a successful journalist. There she
falls in love with Veer, who appreciates her for exactly who she is.
When Noomi and Veer decide to marry, Noomi must observe a host of
patriarchal wedding rituals at the behest of her new in-laws, whose
cultural customs deviate from her own. Soon, Noomi realizes that her
worst fears have come to pass--she is trapped in the same cycle of
self-destructiveness as her mother, and she must battle her impulses or
risk losing it all.
A riveting exploration of class and tradition in contemporary India,
Noomi is as quick-witted as she is quick-tempered. At times funny and
tragic, taking place over many years of Noomi's life, Naheed Phiroze
Patel's exhilarating debut novel shows how society encourages us to see
ourselves through the eyes of others.
