I love that this book deals with so many different issues while telling a compelling story. I thought Hana's story ARC was well written, she finds her voice and she isn't afraid to use it. The supporting family and friends were all great and I love how they all find their own paths as well. Highly recommend this novel and I look forward to reading more of Uzma Jalaluddin's books in the future. ( )

Hana is many things, an intern at a radio station, waitress in her family’s restaurant “ Three Sisters Byrani Poutine”, podcaster and story writer. She has a large Indian family and is joined by an aunt and cousin from India. This novel does emphasize how close Indian families are. It was interesting to learn about a Indian neighborhood in Toronto. Novel touched on racism and hatred of Muslims with an incident on the way to a baseball game, and a protest at a street festival. Novel was okay but I didn’t love it ( )

Muslim Canadian aspiring radio broadcaster is visited by her South Asian (Indian) relatives and tries to save her family's restaurant while dealing with Islamophobic hate and a mysterious (and infuriating) enemy/ally in modern Toronto.

Another great drama from Uzma Jalaluddin - more, please! I love how all the characters have different experiences and how they each have their own dramas happening. ( )

This retelling of You’ve Got Mail is set in Toronto. Hana Khan is an anonymous podcaster, an intern at a local indie radio station, and a waitress at her family’s halal restaurant. But the restaurant is struggling and Hana doesn’t believe it will survive when a new halal restaurant opens up in their street.

I really enjoyed this! Some of the developments were predictable, following as they do the structure of You’ve Got Mail, but there are surprises too. Like the pressure Hana faces at the radio station to only represent and only present certain narratives about South Asian Muslim migrants. Or the other instances of racism she encounters in her community.

Or the abrupt arrival of two relatives visiting from India, and how they both, in different ways, influence Hana’s perspective and her circumstances.

And I like stories which are, for want of a better label, about “courtship through messages”.

StanleyP: Our lives are running parallel. I have business-and-family-shaped complications too. That new project I was telling you about is finally happening. No relationship-shaped complication for me either.
[...] AnaBGR: Why can’t I be the complicated one? You always have to copy me.
StanleyP: It’s what a bot does. The Stanbot is also programmed to give excellent advice and tell hilarious jokes, and is available for revelations of real names or the exchange of pictures/phone numbers. Just say the word. I’d love to get to know you better.

My stomach jolted with awareness at his words. I wanted more too. But it wasn’t as easy for me. All the bravery I possessed was currently being put towards other things. ( )

After reading "Ayesha At Last," I decided that I would read anything Uzma Jalaluddin writes. So I was SO excited to get my hands on "Hana Khan Carries On" when it came out! Jalaluddin proves she is not a one-hit wonder, as she gives us another winner in this fun, yet still thought-provoking, novel.

Hana Khan works part-time at her family's halal restaurant in the Golden Crescent neighborhood of Toronto, Canada. Her dream is to tell stories on the radio, and she runs a podcast while also doing an internship at the local radio station (where her tone-deaf female boss refuses to try to understand the Muslim life from Hana's own lived experiences). When a new halal burger restaurant threatens to open right across the street from Hana's family's restaurant, Hana fears that her family's already-struggling restaurant will be driven out of business. Through it all Hana relies on the closeness and support of her family, as well as the moral support of StanleyP, a loyal podcast listener who becomes a close (albeit anonymous) friend. And Hana has to decide just how big an enemy is the new restaurant, really?

Reminiscent of the movie "You've Got Mail," this book keeps things light-hearted without skirting the deeper issues of racism and family loyalty. Interesting and quirky characters like Hana's aunt and teenage cousin who are visiting from India; Hana's best friends Yusuf and Lili; Aydin, the young owner of the new halal burger restaurant; and StanleyP provide lively dialogue in this entertaining rom-com that kept me interested all the way until the last page. I cannot wait to see what Jalaluddin comes up with for her next book! ( )