The Bad Muslim Discount

DEBUT It is not the discount that is “bad,” it is the Muslim at the center of this superb story of Pakistanis who immigrated to the United States. Intelligent young Faris has an inferiority complex, as older brother Aamir does everything with perfection; he doesn’t even try to compete with his parents’ pride and joy as he makes his way through life, eventually becoming a lawyer and discovering his true self. In alternating chapters, we also uncover the life of Azza, a pretty young woman who escaped from war-torn Baghdad with her conservative father, who beats her repeatedly. She is also seriously threatened by a neighbor. The two stories merge when Azza moves into the same apartment building as Anvar. With the narrative’s dose of comedy as well as tragedy, Masood’s characters become flesh and blood, not easily forgotten.