Critical Assessment “To open out his novel, Hamid intercuts the story of Nadia and Saeed with short, strobe-lit glimpses of other people’s stories around the world in a fashion that recalls a technique David Mitchell has employed in novels like “Ghostwritten.” It’s a technique that underscores the simultaneity of time and experience in our globalized world, reminding us of both the amazing similarities and vast differences among countries and individuals across an increasingly interconnected planet. "By mixing the real and the surreal, and using old fairy-tale magic, Hamid has created a fictional universe that captures the global perils percolating beneath today’s [...]