EVERYONE THINKS THEY KNOW WHAT HAPPENED . . .
The Sharaf family is the picture of success. They arrived in America as refugees with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. And now, after years of hard work, they live in the most exclusive neighbourhood, their growing family attending the most prestigious schools. Zorah, the eldest daughter, is the apple of her father’s eye.
But when Zorah dies in an unthinkable tragedy, the family is thrust into the court of public opinion. There is talk that the Sharafs’ happy household was anything but, and soon the veneer of the model immigrant family starts to crumble.
Those who knew her best – and those who never met her – all have an opinion on who Zorah really was, and what really happened to her . . .
Told through the chorus of voices surrounding the Sharafs, Good People is a riveting, provocative and unforgettable story of community, family and identity.
Book Info: Print length: 410 pages. Publisher: Virago. Publication Date: 3 Feb 2026
My Thoughts.
I have seen this book being discussed all over social media and the reviews were all so positive that I knew I had to read it.
Good People is the debut novel by Patmeena Sabit published in February this year. It tells the story of the Sharaf family. Afghan refugees who have fled their home for Virginia, USA, to live the American Dream.
Rahmat Sharaf is the devoted head of the family. Despite coming to the United States as a refugee, he has worked relentlessly to provide a comfortable and successful life for his wife, Maryam, and their four children: Zorah, the eldest, Omer, their son, and two younger children..
When their beloved daughter, Zorah, is caught up in a tragedy, the Sharaf family finds itself thrust into the public spotlight, with every aspect of their lives subjected to intense scrutiny.
The book is told entirely through transcripts, interviews and news reports and each “voice” tells a different story with a different perspective on what happened. Everyone has their own version of the truth and the reader is taken on a fascinating journey from the moment the Sharaf’s arrive in the US to the present day.
Each chapter is a teeny puzzle piece of the story and each voice tells a conflicting version of accounts. It’s impossible to know who to believe and who to trust in this clever and original way of story-telling.
The novel explores a wide range of themes, from cultural identity and immigration to the realities of the American Dream, as well as community scrutiny, grief, and loss. Despite the brief chapters, the author has created real and believable characters, breathing life into the Sharaf family and inviting readers to examine the tragedy from every angle in an attempt to understand not only what happened, but why.
It’s also important to understand that even though the many narrators have their own individual and differing version of events retold, we will never know what really goes on behind closed doors.
Overall, this is a thought-provoking, powerful debut novel which would be PERFECT for book club discussions.
