The Perfect Gentleman, A Muslim Boy Meets the West by Imran Ahmad (pp 333). This is one of the most interesting social commentaries in the guise of a memoir I’ve ever read. Much of it is written from a youthful perspective that effectively uses naïveté ignorance (used non-pejoratively) to shed light on physical difference, relationships (mostly imagined), discrimination, racism, classism, school, culture, family, and above all religion. As the author, a Pakistani transplant along with his family, living in England and later Scotland, moved through childhood and into adulthood (including more relationships—also mostly imagined), higher education, politics, cars, and work, he increasingly talked about religion. As he was ‘accosted’ by evangelical Christians in obnoxious and repeated attempts to pull him away from Islam (sometimes harshly), he openly explores the two religions, their similarities & dissimilarities, faith versus rationally based beliefs, the historical Jesus and Muhammad, his own temptations, religious practice, comparisons of theological precepts and their real world applications, and more. His observations about himself, his beliefs, his very real doubts, his fellow believers, all the while making honest comparisons with other religions (though mostly Christianity and its adherents) are fascinating. All of this very heavy material is explored within a mostly lightweight framework and it seamlessly flows in, out, and through more mundane and secular elements of everyday life. Refreshingly, Ahmad is effortlessly humorous, never breaking a sweat while revealing humor in everyday events and situations. Because his views on all aspects of life come from an angle literally foreign to most of us, his observations are delightfully askew and above all insightful. This is an amazingly easy read, yet is as thoughtful and provocative a book as I have read in recent memory. ( )

The author has a very direct, matter-of-fact writing style that I enjoyed. He lost me at the end though. I followed the author from childhood into his mid-twenties and then a jarring jump into his forties. What the? There is no explanation, absolutely nothing to shed light on what happened to the relationships of his youth. I am left to guess at how he actually came to be the man presented at the end of the book. I enjoyed reading his memoir but I resent being "yada, yada, yada"-ed through some clearly life changing events.

I received this book via Goodreads' giveaway program.

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This book wasn't as funny as I had expected based on the blurbs on the cover; one of which read "...irresistible - a charming, laugh-out-loud-funny memoir." Imran's boy meeting west memoir was really an examination of Christianity vs. Islam. I found that fascinating but not funny as promised. His inability to connect with girls and later women had more to do with him being a pious bore and a nerd than the fact that his heritage was Pakistani. His neurotic fantasy life about marrying Janice became redundant and pathetic after several excruciating chapters. The best part of the book was the afterword where he examines his life in less black and white terms and shows a little more of his humanity thatn he did in the rest of the book. ( )

Poignant and thought provoking a roller-coaster ride of emotional consciousness.

This memoir had me laughing from the first chapter. Imran really pours his heart out in this book and it is easy to tell he is completely sincere. In The Perfect Gentleman Imran shares a little bit about each year of his life, from his birth up until his late teens, skipping through later adulthood at faster pace. It easy for the reader to immerse themselves into this story and follow Imran along as he attends school and later college in London.

At times it was sad to read about the bullying and racial discrimination Imran and his family endured while living in London. Although Imran did not grow up in Pakistan, he and his family went back regularly throughout his early life to visit his extended family still living there. During these moments in the book one gets suggestive moments of what life in Pakistan may have been like. Life for Imran is mostly in London although he does speak about a few short trips to the America as a child.

I went through many emotions while reading this book especially when Imran hit his later teens and he became more set in his ways. I found this memoir very compelling, at times informative other times irritating, yet overall thoughtful and surprising. In the end the little boy who started the conversation turned into a wise and wonderful man who left me enlightened along the way. ( )