In the Name of the Father

Anees Salim’s The Odd Book of Baby Names is an expertly conceived novel comprising nine voices relating nine autobiographical narratives, all of which have one thread in common—each narrator has been begotten by the same kingly patriarch. The speakers, progenies born of legally wedded wives, or out of wedlock, many of them unknown to one another and unaware of their common paternity, narrate their quotidian experiences. While most of the voices are male, there is one female voice, well-loved by the patriarch, and an adolescent spirit. Several narrators’ paths cross and narratives intersect or intertwine, yet each stands independent of the other in a kaleidoscope of events that rivet the reader’s attention and render the novel unputdownable. Two of the nine narratives are by the patriarch’s legitimate sons Azam and Moazzam who reside in the palace, and seven by progeny scattered across the city, begotten of various women.