Jameela Green Ruins Everything by Zarqa Nawaz: Book Review

The latest release from Zarqa Nawaz, Jameela Green Ruins Everything, is due to be released on March 8, 2022, in Canada and May 10 everywhere else. Jameela is a writer who wants her book to top the New York Times bestsellers list. She does what anyone would do, get a man accidentally deported and then pretend to join a terror organization.

I want to thank Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Jameela Green Ruins Everything. All opinions presented here are solely mine.

CW/TW: violence, terrorism, murder, sexism, Islamaphobia, racism

Synopsis from Goodreads

Jameela Green only has one wish.

To see her memoir on the New York Times bestseller list. When her dream doesn’t come true, she seeks spiritual guidance at her local mosque. New imam and recent immigrant Ibrahim Sultan is appalled by Jameela’s shallowness but agrees to assist her on one condition: that she perform a good deed. 

Jameela reluctantly accepts his terms, kicking off a chain of absurd and unfortunate events. When the person the two do-gooders try to help is recruited by a terrorist group called D.I.C.K.—Dominion of the Islamic Caliphate and Kingdoms—the federal authorities become suspicious of Ibrahim, and soon after, the imam mysteriously disappears.  

Certain that the CIA has captured Ibrahim for interrogation via torture, Jameela decides to set off on a one-woman operation to rescue him. Her quixotic quest soon finds her entangled in an international plan targeting the egomaniacal leader of the terrorist organization—a scheme that puts Jameela, and countless others, including her hapless husband and clever but disapproving daughter, at risk.  

Positives

Jameela Green is a flawed character, but she is still relatable. She’s dealing with guilt and trauma from her teen years, thus leaving her unable to truly invest in relationships. Yet, she knows she does this and does try to make amends. Jameela Green is a woman who wants success, and who doesn’t? Many people turn to religion and their faith to help achieve success. But I don’t think many go to quite the same lengths as Jameela.

Negatives

A few parts in the book feel a bit preachy about politics. But this helps to move the characters and the story along.

My Opinion

The book is heavy with political information. While politics isn’t something that I usually read about, I found some of the book’s information to be informative, and it has left me questioning what I thought I knew. But a good book should do that, shouldn’t it?

While a bit heavy on politics, and by extension racism and Islamaphobia, there is humor to be found in the book. Not much of it is laugh-out-loud humor, though there are bits of that, but more of a smirk or a smile kind of humor.

How can a book with terrorism and other negative things at its core have humor? How else would you explain going to a book club meeting only to find yourself in the middle of a spy network later that afternoon? Or going on an international adventure to save someone, only to find them helping to protect you? Trust me; there’s humor in the book!

Another thing that is in the book is personal growth. Yes, Jameela grows and develops as a character. But she’s not the only one. Almost every character named and several that are not, grow and change throughout the story.

I read somewhere that if you are a fan of Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple, you should give this book a try. And I have to agree!

Looking for some more books to read? Check out my other book reviews and my monthly reading wrap-ups.