Men like ours : a novel / Bindu Bansinath.

By:

Bansinath, Bindu [author.]

Material type: Text

TextPublisher: New York : Bloomsbury Publishing, 2026Description: pages cmContent type:

text

Media type:

unmediated

Carrier type:

volume

ISBN:

9781639735228
1639735224

Subject(s):

Genre/Form:

DDC classification:

[Fic] 23

LOC classification:

PS3602.A6685 M46 2026

Summary: "When Matthew Pillai is found dead, slumped over the wheel of his BMW, the women of Willow Road are roped into the investigation of their friend's death. At the center of the case are the Sharmas -- Anita, a widow whose late husband introduced Matthew to the neighborhood, and her boundary-pushing daughter, Leila, who called him Uncle. To Anita, who has been in freefall since her arrival in the United States as a young woman, Matthew's presence offered hope, including a promise of betterment for Leila. The truth, however, is far stranger. In this darkly funny debut, the women of Willow Road find that despite their internecine quarrels, casual backstabbing, and generational feuds, in the end, there is no one to turn to but each other"-- Publisher.

List(s) this item appears in: New Adult Fiction Fiction notes: Click to open in new window

Average rating: 2.0 (1 votes)

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Collection	Shelving location	Call number	Status	Date due	Barcode	Item holds
Adult Book	Phillipsburg Free Public Library	Adult Fiction	New Books	FIC BASINATH	On hold		36748002650457	1

Total holds: 1

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

"The most promising debut I've read in decades." --Gary Shteyngart, New York Times bestselling author of Our Country Friends

From a brilliant new voice in fiction, a darkly comic and moving story about death, life, and community in a South Asian suburban enclave of New Jersey.

When Matthew Pillai is found dead, slumped over the wheel of his BMW, the women of Willow Road are roped into the investigation of their friend's death.

At the center of the case are the Sharmas--Anita, a widow whose late husband introduced Matthew to the neighborhood, and her boundary-pushing daughter, Leila, who called him Uncle. To Anita, who has been in freefall since her arrival in the United States as a young woman, Matthew's presence offered hope, including a promise of betterment for Leila. The truth, however, is far stranger.

In this darkly funny debut, the women of Willow Road find that despite their internecine quarrels, casual backstabbing, and generational feuds, in the end, there is no one to turn to but each other.

"When Matthew Pillai is found dead, slumped over the wheel of his BMW, the women of Willow Road are roped into the investigation of their friend's death. At the center of the case are the Sharmas -- Anita, a widow whose late husband introduced Matthew to the neighborhood, and her boundary-pushing daughter, Leila, who called him Uncle. To Anita, who has been in freefall since her arrival in the United States as a young woman, Matthew's presence offered hope, including a promise of betterment for Leila. The truth, however, is far stranger. In this darkly funny debut, the women of Willow Road find that despite their internecine quarrels, casual backstabbing, and generational feuds, in the end, there is no one to turn to but each other"-- Publisher.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

A suspicious death sparks an investigation and heated gossip in an Indian American enclave in the excellent debut from Bansinath. Matthew Pillai, 55, is found dead in his car on a New Jersey highway, surrounded by pills. The police interview multiple women whose addresses showed up on his GPS record, including recently widowed Anita Sharma, whose late husband, Ashok, was a colleague of Matthew's and introduced him to their neighbors on Willow Road. The nonlinear narrative then dives into the Sharmas' unhappy arranged marriage and move to the U.S. in the 1990s, revealing how in the years since, Anita, who hates America and calls it "death by QVC," constantly criticizes both Ashok and their daughter, Leila. When Ashok brings avuncular Matthew home for dinner, he takes a shine to Leila, 13, and becomes fast friends with the families in the neighborhood, gaining their trust. He encourages Leila's desire to become an actor, paying for her drama classes and taking her to Broadway shows, at first with his wife, Louise, then by himself. By the time Leila is 15, she realizes Matthew has been grooming her for sex, driving the story to its crisis point. Bansinath is an impressive storyteller with a firm grasp on the intersecting story lines, showing how Anita's bitterness drives away Leila, making her vulnerable to a predator. The author also breathes life into the tight-knit community, where neighbors grow jealous of Leila over Matthew's doting on her and badmouth Anita, whom they view as a snob. Readers will be engrossed by this clear-eyed and explosive tale. (May)

Booklist Review

Bansinath's debut literary novel has a huge cast of characters and centers on a tight-knit South Asian community in New Jersey that is reeling from the death of Matthew Pillai, a well-liked and wealthy man found slumped dead in his BMW on the interstate. In the days following the tragedy, shocked friends and acquaintances gossip and speculate about the events leading to his demise. In the fictional immigrant enclave of Willow Road, the tragedy reverberates most intensely through the Sharmas. The cheeky character index dubs Anita Sharma a snob and her daughter, Leila, a tart, and readers will find out why as layers of Matthew's personality and the residents' tangled relationships come to light. This darkly funny satire threaded with a subtle murder mystery is thoughtful and unflinching. Readers may find it hard to root for anyone since most of the protagonists are deeply unlikable as they share intimate thoughts that expose scathing sociocultural biases laced with jealousy and malice. Bansinath's frank and sardonic insights into immigrant experiences within the walls of an insular community are complexly entertaining.