Shaparak KhorsandiReseñas

Oh my word! Where to start with this one - it has to be the funniest yet saddest book I have read all year. We all like a drink now and again, and we've more than likely all had that one drink too many where we don't remember how we got home yet wake up in our own bed. In Nina is Not OK, Shappi Khorsandi has written a dark and brutally honest account of one young woman's battle with alcohol. Seeing the effects on Nina's family will, I'm sure, make some people think twice about having 'just one more drink'.

Nina, at 17, is at the in-between age of child and adult; she thinks she's old enough to make decisions but she doesn't realise that her mum still knows best. She lives with her mum, Sandra, step-dad, Alan, and half-sister, Katie, who she adores. After reeling from the break-up with her boyfriend, Jamie, Nina turns to alcohol to drown her sorrows. On a night out with her friends, Beth and Zoe, Nina gets thrown out of a club and ends up going home in a taxi completely out of her head with her knickers in her hand. Nina can't remember what happened but thanks to the wonders of social media a video gets posted to fill in the blanks.

Nina's mum is at her wits end, having seen the devastating effects of alcoholism when she was married to Nina's dad, who unfortunately died. So when Alan gets offered a job in Germany they arrange for Nina to live with her friend Beth and her dad, Max. Max is unable to cope with Nina's binge drinking so Sandra returns from Germany to put Nina in rehab. As Nina gets the help she needs, she realises that she's not to blame for what happened that night and she didn't ask for it. There's only one problem, the guy she was with that night, Alex, is now going out with her friend, Zoe.

So raw, emotive and powerful, Nina is Not OK is as addictive to readers as alcohol is to an alcoholic. Written with such honest humour that you laugh at times and then guiltily realise that it's really not funny, not for those who live with alcoholism. When Nina bumps into the kitchen wall, I was reminded of a scene in Absolutely Fabulous when Edina and Patsy visit a vineyard in France and Edina complains that someone has stolen her steering wheel. It's that kind of brilliantly dark humour. I would definitely recommend Nina is Not OK to all book lovers - it's one of the best books I've read this year.

I received this ebook from the publisher, Ebury Press, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I listened to this in audiobook format, narrated by the author herself, and I'm really glad I did.

This is quite an intense read and I did find some parts hard to get through. This book deals with themes such as alcoholism, sex, consent, rape, etc so it's not exactly a light read. Khorsandi treats these subjects with the brevity they deserve, but injects a tone of flippant (?) 'humor' that adds an interesting tone to the experiences of Nina. I found all the characters extremely believable and their opinions all clash with each others in really interesting ways.

Ultimately I consider this book worth the read, maybe just prepare yourself for some heavy scenes

Read this in one sitting with my heart aching. Nina is definitely not OK, she's not one of those girls who can go out for one drink, she is all or nothing. The question is what happened last Saturday night? This book deals with the most harrowing subject matter with great humour but never diminishes what's actually happening. It should be required reading in schools across the country.

Don't be misled by the light, chatty tone. Protagonist Nina Swanson, 17, sounds upbeat and snarky as she laughs off the horrific things that happen to her while she's drunk (what a funny story! I'll tell my grandkids about this! not everyone has such a wild night!), but this novel is no apologism for sexual abuse — as much as it may initially come off as a comedy.

It's Nina's last year before university, and she's set to soar through her A levels — but soon her plans are blindsided by her parents' decision to move to Germany, leaving her alone and drinking her way through a traumatic breakup. The book follows Nina through her self-destructive spiral into alcoholism, the denial, and eventually her realization that she is not OK. Fast-paced and horrifying, it's a gripping story. Set today, the novel shows the unspeakable horror of misogyny meeting technology, and author Shappi Khorsandi deftly avoids blaming Nina for men's choices, though there does seem to be an undercurrent of "not all men," which I could have done without.

(Sadly, the unfortunate term "slut-shaming" crops throughout the novel, and it's depressing to see this woman-hating buzzword yet again replace language actually articulating male violence. I felt the sane sadness and disappointment to see it show up in Monica Lewinsky's TED Talk. When men exploit vulnerable women, who are then then publicly crucified, it has nothing to do with a "slut" being "shamed.")

Added bonus: I had no reason to expect the protagonist would be anything other than straight, so it was a nice surprise to see Nina come to terms with her bisexuality throughout the course of the novel.

Note: I received an advance reader's copy through NetGalley.

I liked this alot. The comparison to Mitford and Durrell is apt - eccentric family, unusual situation, told from a child's point of view, really well written. This last bit was a surprise as everyone and their mother is writing a memoir no matter what their literary skills are. Khorsandi has a story to tell and tells it very well - lots of charm and humor.

Originally posted here

Nina starts out as a fairly typical 17 year old, she likes to go out on the lash with her friends and her fake ID and have fun. However, Nina's life is slowly spiralling out of control - she is having some problems at home and she has just been dumped by her soul mate. Pretty quickly her drinking becomes uncontrollable and she has frequent blackouts.

Nina has an authentic voice, she could have been someone you would have known in sixth form or college. She is unlikeable at times and often I wanted to shake her and exclaim 'what the hell are you doing!' Like many 17 year olds, Nina makes some horrendous decisions. There were parts of this book I physically cringed for her, some of the situations she finds herself in were just awful.

The teen binge drinking culture is portrayed perfectly and I often had to remind myself that this was fiction. Nina's interactions with her friends and the dramas that we emerged felt very real, Khorsandi captures the teenage voice so accurately. Needless to say there are trigger warnings for alcohol abuse, abusive relationships, harmful sexual behaviour and sexual assault. No uncomfortable details were spared. The reader hits rock bottom with Nina and you cannot help feeling sympathy for her.

Sexual identity and feminism (as interpreted by teenagers) were also touched upon in this book which gave additional layers to the narrative. This book is so compulsively readable. The conclusion to Nina's story was satisfying and I felt the book ended on a positive note.

I feel like Nina is Not OK would be able to offer a great deal to critical discussions about binge drinking and rape culture and would make a great book club read. Highly recommend.

Disclaimer
I received a free uncorrected proof from Netgalley. I was not required to give a review.

Wow! Absolutely stunning. Best coming-of-age story I have read in ages. Gripped me from page one and I tried to make time whenever possible to read this.
Nina is 17. Nina is an alcoholic. Nina wants to feel wanted. Performing an inappropriate sexual act with a random guy in a nightclub isn't the way to go about it, but when Nina starts drinking she turns into "the worst version of herself". Nina is so out of it that the time between being thrown out of the nightclub and getting home by taxi with her knickers in her hand is a total blur. But that night is going to be pivotal for Nina, as she follows a self-destructive path, going through denial and self-blame, before accepting that she is not ok.
Told from Nina's first person perspective, this was raw, seriously hard-hitting but incredibly insightful and very authentic. The author did an amazing job of not only tackling subjects such as alcoholism, the harmful use of social media and today's culture of victim blaming but she also explores bereavement, friendships, first loves and stepfamilies and doesn't shy away from the topic of young people exploring their sexuality.
Considering the topics covered, this was surprisingly full of humour. Some of the dialogue between Nina and her friends Beth and Trish was absolutely hilarious. Probably not a great surprise to many, as Shappi Khorsandi is a well-known comedienne in the UK. She has created a gripping and emotional story while keeping it totally real. The character development was fantastic. This book dealt so realistically with so many issues facing young people today, it should be required reading in secondary schools and colleges and on the shelves of any parents with teenagers.
Some of this may be uncomfortable reading due to the subject matter and the author certainly doesn't mince her words, but to me, it made this even more powerful and realistic. Absolutely perfect! One of my favourite books this year. Would give it more than 5 stars if I could.
Many thanks to Random House UK, Ebury Publishing for my ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of the best memoirs I've ever read - and I hadn't even heard of the author before I started reading!

Shappi's father was (and is) a famous satirical Irani writer who fell foul of the Ayatollah's new regime in Iran and had to flee to the UK. He, his wife, Shappi and her big brother settled in London. This memoir tells of Shappi and her family's life in the UK from when the family arrived and it's warm and funny.

It also contains passages about life in Iran before and after the family fled. I loved it! The bits about Iran are very well written and totally accessible.

I’m a little bit older than Shappi, but the English bit of the memoir bought back loads of memories for me - some of the games she played, the feeling of starting a new school (albeit that I could speak the lingo whereas Shappi had to learn it from scratch) where all things I could relate to.

I was vaguely aware that there was a ‘situation’ in Iran At the time of the revolution there I was 13 and whilst the word Ayatollah was being bandied about all over the place (and a British comedy TV show called Not the Nine O'clock News even did a sketch/song with the chorus "Ayatollah Khomeini closer and I will fall for your charms Ayatollah don't come any closer or I will send out an alarm and rush into your arms") I really didn't know a great deal about the situation so it was great to learn a bit more. And this is one of those books that makes one want to go off and find more, so I spent most of yesterday afternoon on Wikipedia!

Nowadays, Shappi is famous herself as a comedian and has made appearances on TV shows such as Mock The Week and Have I Got News For You, but whilst I watch those programmes I hadn’t come across her before - meaning that for me this memoir stands up as just a fantastic book in it’s own right rather than a ‘celeb memoir’. Great stuff!

(charity shop, 26 November 2011)

The comedian's early years, from the time she moved with her family from Iran to England, with refugee status and a father who was wanted by the Ayatollah's regime and was at serious risk, yet kept publishing satirical articles and sheltering his fellow-countrypeople. The politics are all seen from a very well portrayed child's perspective, and the fact that for every struggle to explain fishfingers to her mum there's a racist incident at school or a menacing phone call give this book an edge and emotional depth that I wasn't entirely expecting. A good read.

Shappi Khorsandi moved from Tehran to London in 1976. She was 3 years old. Her father, Hadi Khorsandi, was transferred to London by the newspaper for which he worked. Hadi Khorsandi was a poet and cartoonist with a comedic political leaning. The Khorsandi family become political exiles in the UK during the Iranian revolution. This is Khorsandi's memoir of moving to a new country with a different language and very different culture. She tells of going to school, speaking no English, trying to make friends and figure out the new rules.
I heard about this book when the author, who is a stand up comic in the UK, was on The Graham Norton show. She told a number of humorous stories about her family. While there is a good portion of the book that is very funny, this is often overshadowed by the family's political situation. Hadi Khorsandi was on the Ayatollah Khomeini's hit list. The family actually went into hiding at one point (one of the funniest stories in the book). Recommended.

I enjoyed this one, told from the point of view of an innocent child aged Shappi Khorsandi with some darker bits as well as she's describes what's going on in homeland Iran.

Really enjoyed this portrayal of English life through Iranian eyes. A warm and witty narrative by Shappi Khorsandi, reverting back and forth between her childhood experiences of life in Iran, and settling in London. As someone born in England, but from a non-English culture, I found much to relate to. As well as learning about Iranian culture, and the impact of being suddenly exposed to a whole new world, Shappi reminds us of what it was like to be a child. The pleasures and traumas of eating too many sweets, making friends and starting a new school were all brought back to me, and I finished this book feeling nostalgic but satisfied. Something different but a really good read.