IN THE FRIEND ZONE

WITH HER MUCH-FETED NEW NOVEL, KAMILA SHAMSIE OFFERS US READERS A RARE HOPE-IF NURTURED WELL, SOME FRIENDSHIPS DO INDEED LAST FOREVER

- Latha Anantharaman

BEST OF FRIENDS is already being called the 'Book of the Year' by British newspapers, and trumpeted as a major publishing event

Kamila Shamsie's Best of Friends is not just a new novel from a much-awarded third-generation writer. British newspapers are already calling it the 'Book of the Year', and it is being orchestrated as a publishing event by Bloomsbury, with embargoes and coordinated release of reviews. But once we adjust our fanfare-canceling headphones and actually sit down to read the book, we find a well-crafted, thought-provoking story about friendship-a human bond that is more complex than family ties, sex, or even politics.