I started to read this book mostly because my grandfather wrote it and I had not gotten around to reading it yet. But once I started reading it I started to like it more and more as the book went on. This book is about the main character Mehboob Qureshi, starting from nothing with his family in a very poor part of Zanzibar Africa. The memoir starts out with Mehboob and  his background such as where he comes from, his religion, and his family. From there it brings you threw his life with one main goal in mind, to become a doctor and move him and his family out of the bad situation they are in in Zanzibar.

The main character Mehboob Qureshi is very curious about what there is for him outside of Zanzibar and he  always wants to get better and just be the best person he can be. While Mehboob’s family is fine settling with what they have, Mehboob is the completely opposite he wants to make money to go to medical school and get his family in a higher standard of living even if he has to sacrifice a lot of time and work to get there. Mehboob threw out the book faces many problems with education, family, and mostly money to help him and his family get out of poverty. The problem with money is very apparent right away in the book because Mehboobs sister Phupejaan is getting around the age where she can get married and a custom in Zanzibar is for the bride's father to pay for a very large multiple day wedding that is very extravagant.

This book was an  exciting  read because it was very culturally diverse for me. Reading about Mehboobs everyday life in each chapter always had something new to  learn about the culture and the customs of Zanzibar. Over all, I liked the book a lot but I will say that getting completely into the book like i’m sure you will be takes a few chapters but once you understand Mehboob and his family’s background you will not be able to put the book down. The type of people I would recommend to read this book is people who are interested in learning about foreign cultures customs and beliefs about religion and everyday things they do that is very different from what the customs you follow and the beliefs you have.