Lead Review (Those People Next Door)
- Book: Those People Next Door
- Location: East London
- Author: Kia Abdullah
Salma Khatun moves into a new house on the Blenheim Estate, together with her husband Bilal and son Zain. It is a short move from their original home on the other side of the A12 in East London. They hope that a new start will offer Zain a more positive environment after he got into trouble in the sixth form. They meet their neighbours at a barbecue and already a sense of unease percolates through Salma’s veins because of throwaway comments that seem singularly inappropriate.
It is their immediate neighbours, Tom and Willa Hutton with whom they find themselves straying into conflict. Zain has erected a BLM flag in the front garden and Tom is spotted lifting and tossing it. Micro-agressions ensue until it cannot be overlooked that Tom’s actions seem to be motivated by racism. Attempts to exonerate his behaviour are made, suggesting he “he didn’t mean what he said” but video evidence might just suggest otherwise. Keying of Selma’s car and a paint attack on the façade of their house are just some of the issues with which the Kahtuns have to deal. Despite the adults’ altercations, Zain and Jamie, the Huttons’ son, firm up a friendship based on software development and can pop between houses across the connecting balconies. Zain is very caring of Jamie’s loss of hearing.
Bilal was a restaurateur, pre-pandemic, and they are trying to sell the premises to raise capital, but it is a thankless task given the state of the restaurant industry. Suddenly there are squatters, who seem set on staying, yet another headache for the family. Finally their beloved dog goes missing.
The stress on the couple relationships in both families is pronounced and the author does a good job of highlighting the pressures. She looks at the part played by each spouse and how they support the other, at times perhaps colluding in behaviour which serves to underline the value of integrity. Social Media, inevitably, has its part to play in the whole sorry story.
A dreadful event takes place and Part 2 looks at the subsequent trial to establish the perpetrator and it evolves into a well constructed courtroom drama. Part 3 closes the storyline.
The story is clearly laid out as relations between the two families deteriorate, and once the court proceedings begin, there is a gripping change of gear. It moves along at a good pace that I found gripping and intelligent.
I found the ending of Those People Next Door to be a little far fetched and I really couldn’t visualise Selma doing what she did in the concluding paragraph – she, of all people, is familiar with the consequences of deliberate behaviour.
Overall, I felt enthusiastic about the story and how it unfolded.
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