For Matrimonial Purposes Book

Unmarried at 24 - and with no prospects in sight - Anju is a great source of worry to her family. Despite the best efforts of relatives, fortune-tellers, and matchmakers to arrange a marriage, she can't seem to find a husband - or at least one she's willing to marry. Quickly becoming a spinster by her culture's standards, she is eager to escape the community that views her as a failure. After pleading with her parents for permission, she boards a plane bound for the United States and a dream of a career. And while husband-hunting isn't any easier in New York City, at least she's got company.

In this sparkling debut, an unconventional heroine defies tradition by making a marriage between the strict customs of India and the wild freedoms of America to find her own happy ending. Hilarious and heart-warming, For Matrimonial Purposes proves that, while the search for love takes many forms, the heartbreak and exhilaration are universal.

Library Journal

Writer and fashion correspondent/editor for CNN, CNBC Asia, and publications such as the Los Angeles Times, Daswani has written a charming debut novel that could be seen as a milder version of Helen Fielding's Bridget Jones's Diary with a distinct Indian flavor. As the novel opens, readers are introduced to 33-year-old Anju, who is attending a family wedding in Bombay while on a two-week vacation from her job as a fashion publicist in New York. As narrator, Anju relays all the trials and tribulations she is subjected to by her well-meaning parents and relatives as they attempt to find her a suitable husband for her and marry her off according to Indian customs. Writing with dry wit and liberal doses of humor, Daswani goes back in time to follow Anju's search for matrimonial bliss from age 21, in the process offering insight into Indian culture and traditions as well as a behind-the-scenes peek at the fashion industry. While the conclusion could have been a little more fleshed out, readers will find it hard to stop themselves from cheering for Anju as she gradually transforms from a na ve young woman into a savvy, independent Indian American living in "Umrica." Recommended for all fiction collections and essential for libraries serving Indian populations.-Shirley N. Quan, Orange Cty. P.L., Santa Ana, CA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.