The Centre

Manazir Siddiqi’s ambitious debut packs insightful observations about racism, classism, and colonialism into a dark mystery involving translator Anisa Ellahi. Born into a wealthy family in Karachi, Pakistan, 35-year-old Anisa now lives in London and augments her lavish allowance by subtitling Bollywood films, though she dreams of a career translating literary works. At a translation conference, she meets Adam, a man who, despite his poor university marks, has parlayed his fluency in 10 languages into a well-paid career. The two begin dating, and after some badgering, Adam admits that “a super elite, super-secret” (and super expensive) language school called the Centre is responsible for his linguistic prowess. Seeing the school as her chance to make her dreams come true, Anisa signs a nondisclosure agreement and settles in for a 10-day stay at the Centre. As she learns more about the school’s methodology and its employees, however, she fears she’s made a terrible mistake. Anisa’s perceptive narration propels the novel, and Manazir Siddiqi’s sharp cultural analysis of England, Pakistan, and India deepens her devilish plot, though the ending is a bit of a letdown. Still, this marks Manazir Siddiqi as a writer to watch. Agent: Stephanie Delman, Trellis Literary. (July)