Homeland Elegies: A Novel

As Ayad recalls the women he slept with during his time under Rind’s influence, he reflects on the one who gave him syphilis—Asha, a religious Muslim American who chose to engage in sexual intercourse with Ayad because he met the astrological profile given to her by a psychic.

The product of immigrant parents who “made it” in America by owning a chain of convenience stores and real estate investments, Asha displeased them by falling in love with Blake, a white man she met at the University of Houston. Asha was in an on-again, off-again relationship with Blake when she met Ayad. Their sexual encounter is unusual for Ayad as he normally only pursues white women, but Asha’s reliance on astrology to give her life meaning intrigues him. Like Asha, Ayad believes in spirituality and decides to share his history of prophetic dreams with her—including his awareness of his dead brother’s presence and knowledge of his grandmother’s death. It is this “shared proclivity for omens” (192) that draws him closer to her despite her already having a boyfriend.

Ayad quickly falls in love with her and dreams of their life together in traditional Pakistani