#BookReview : Twenty Nine going on Thirty by Andaleeb Wajid
Title: Twenty Nine going on Thirty
Genre: Fiction – Romance
Publisher: Penguin
Author: Andaleeb Wajid
The book revolves around the lives of four women – Priya, Farida, Namrata and Mini. Each one of them is different but what binds them together is that they are going to turn thirty soon. Each one of them has their own set of problems to deal with.
Priya is a social media head of a software company and finds it difficult to deal with the fact that she is almost thirty. Being unmarried doesn’t help her cause as her mother is keen on getting her married and is worried that she is turning thirty. Priya is charmed by Ajay, her new neighbour.
Farida is Priya’s best friend and both of them live together. Farida’s parents died when she was thirteen and a woman claiming to be her relative occupied her house and Farida had to run away from her own house because of this woman and her husband. She doesn’t know how to deal with these people who have been living in a house that is hers. She still thinks about her childhood crush whom she can’t seem to get over.
Mini works as a software engineer in the same office as Priya. She’s known in her office circles for her goth chick looks. Mini is heartbroken after an awkward breakup and she still hasn’t found closure as there are questions for which she still hasn’t found the answers.
Namrata is the shy girl of the lot. She has a family that bullies her and controls her life while she thinks about her prince charming.
Will all of them find what they are looking for?
A lot of things seem to happen once these four women come together and become friends. There are good times and bad. But these four women seem to stick together through it all though initially all of them didn’t get along well. There is love that is lost and there is love that is found. There is the ordinariness of daily life, while at times there is lots of drama. The book brings about the emotions they go through, which we can all connect at some point.
What I liked about the book is that it brings out the best of women friendships. The book also portrays strong female characters who are independent and are capable of taking care of themselves. The book is an interesting read. It deals with a range of emotions and situations that an almost thirty year old woman would have to deal with. Once you start reading, it doesn’t take long for you to find your connection with the characters. The never ending list of questions about love, finding comfort in food, chilling with Netflix and that feeling of growing older without having achieved anything great in life. I personally like the way the author builds up her stories based on each of these characters – each character having a story of her own and then bringing it all together. This book is easy to read – a quick read in my opinion.
The only thing that I didn’t quite like about the book was that ending seemed to be a little bollywood-like. If not for that, I really enjoyed reading the book. I’ve grown up reading Andaleeb’s writing in the children’s supplement of a newspaper and I’ve enjoyed reading her work since then!
Thanks to Penguin India for the review copy.
My rating :
4/5
Women’s friendship is often considered as weak but its not.. good read. Thanks for sharing
I have read Andaleeb’s work once. Very detailed review. I love women contemporary fiction. This might interest me.
This is a fascinating, detailed review. Women’s friendship can make for interesting reading!
Oh I would love to review and read this one. Although I’m not near 30 but I can do relate.
Loved the review.
Sounds like a light read. I’m way past 30 now but I’m sure I can remember things then 🙂
I havent heard or read this author yet; your review makes for quite an interesting read. Maybe I will pick it up later in the year for a read.