The Newlyweds, Bangladeshi meets US husband online

The illuminating novel, THE NEWLYWEDS, by Nell Freudenberger, is an insightful look into what constitutes a marriage while examining cultural differences & lifestyles between the USA & Bangladesh.  Amina, the only child of over protective parents only want what's best for their daughter (and themselves.)  Amina's father is a bungler who squanders the family's finances.  Her mother who can't bear to be apart from her, wants her daughter to have more than an impoverished life.  The novel draws religious, family & cultural comparisons between Amina's Muslim upbringing & that of her American husband, George. The real heart of the story are Amina's observations on marriage & family.  Freudenberger's characters & narrative are so easy to perceive I could smell the curry in Bangladesh & feel the chill in the air in Rochester, NY& around the dinner table in George's mother's home.  Arranged marriages are common in Amina's village despite her parent's elopement.  Amina's parents encouraged her to pursue an American husband online.  George & Amina's connection grows over the internet until George flies to meet Amina & her family.  It is decided Amina will immigrate to the US where she & George will wed, in a purported civil & Muslim ceremony. Amina's adjustment to both her new life & marriage shows her resignations, disappointments and triumphs. Amina tells George, "At first we were puzzle pieces. Now we're the puzzle."  Amina discovers, "the hardest thing about marriage - how can you continue to be kind, once you knew all of another person's secrets?"  This is the kind of novel that flourishes with empathy & intelligence.