Sara Hamdan’s debut novel What Will People Think? arrives as a refreshing addition to the coming-of-age literary landscape, offering readers a nuanced exploration of identity, family secrets, and the courage required to live authentically. This compelling narrative follows Mia Almas, a Palestinian-American fact-checker whose double life as a stand-up comedian becomes the catalyst for uncovering decades-old family truths that reshape her understanding of love, sacrifice, and belonging.
Plot Overview: Secrets Within Secrets
The story masterfully weaves between present-day New York and 1940s Palestine, creating a rich tapestry of interconnected narratives. Mia’s carefully compartmentalized existence—respectable day job, secret comedy career, forbidden office romance with her boss Jackson—begins unraveling when her friend Katie publishes an unauthorized article about her comedy performance. This exposure threatens not only Mia’s relationship with her undocumented grandparents but also forces her to confront the weight of family expectations that have shaped her cautious approach to life.
The parallel narrative of her grandmother Teta’s (originally named Zeina) wartime romance with British soldier Richard provides the emotional backbone of the novel. Through a discovered journal, Mia learns about Zeina’s passionate love affair, her arranged marriage to the wealthy Haytham Ramle, and the ultimate betrayal by her sister Layla that led to decades of exile and assumed identity. This historical thread illuminates how patterns of sacrifice, secrecy, and survival have echoed through generations.
Character Development: Authentic and Multilayered
Mia Almas: The Heart of the Story
Hamdan crafts Mia as a wonderfully complex protagonist whose journey from self-censorship to self-acceptance feels genuinely earned. Her internal struggles with cultural expectations, professional ambitions, and romantic desires create a character who is both relatable and distinctive. The author skillfully shows how Mia’s comedy becomes her truth-telling mechanism—the one space where she can be fully herself without apology.
Mia’s relationship with her heritage is portrayed with nuanced authenticity. Rather than presenting a simplistic narrative of tradition versus modernity, Hamdan explores how cultural identity can be both a source of strength and constraint. Mia’s evolution from someone who hides behind tight braids and conservative clothing to someone who embraces her curls and her voice represents more than physical transformation—it’s a reclamation of self.
Supporting Characters: Rich and Purposeful
The supporting cast serves distinct narrative purposes while maintaining individual depth. Jackson emerges as more than a typical love interest; his own multicultural background (Black, Jewish, and Latino) creates meaningful parallels with Mia’s identity struggles. Their romance develops with realistic pacing, avoiding the instant-attraction trope in favor of building genuine connection.
Phaedra, the glamorous new neighbor, functions as both catalyst and mirror for Mia’s transformation. Her openness about sexuality and performance provides the push Mia needs while highlighting different approaches to navigating Arab-American identity. Katie’s betrayal and subsequent redemption arc adds layers to themes about friendship, ambition, and the cost of success.
The grandparents, particularly Teta (Amal/Zeina), represent the novel’s emotional core. Their portrayal avoids stereotypical depictions of immigrant elders, instead presenting complex individuals shaped by trauma, love, and resilience.
Writing Style: Accessible Yet Sophisticated
Hamdan’s prose strikes an effective balance between literary merit and readability. Her writing shines particularly in the comedy club scenes, where the rhythm and timing of stand-up comedy translate beautifully to the page. The author demonstrates impressive range, seamlessly shifting between Mia’s contemporary voice and the more formal, poetic style of the historical Palestinian sections.
The integration of Arabic phrases and cultural references feels organic rather than performative, enhancing authenticity without alienating readers unfamiliar with the culture. Hamdan’s background as a journalist is evident in her precise, economical prose that conveys maximum emotional impact with minimal flourish.
Thematic Depth: Beyond Surface-Level Representation
Identity and Authenticity
The novel’s central theme revolves around the cost of living authentically versus the safety of conformity. Mia’s journey illustrates how self-censorship can become a prison, while her grandmother’s story reveals how societal expectations can literally reshape lives across generations. The parallel narratives demonstrate that the struggle between duty and desire transcends time periods and circumstances.
Love in Multiple Forms
Hamdan presents love as multifaceted—romantic, familial, and self-love all play crucial roles. The contrast between Zeina’s passionate but destructive relationship with Richard and her eventual marriage to Maher (Jeddo) explores different models of love and partnership. Mia’s romance with Jackson develops alongside her growing self-acceptance, suggesting that authentic love requires authentic selfhood.
Family Secrets and Generational Trauma
What Will People Think? expertly examines how family secrets shape subsequent generations. Teta’s hidden past influences her overprotectiveness of Mia, creating cycles of fear and limitation. The revelation of the truth becomes liberating for both women, demonstrating how honesty can break destructive patterns.
Cultural Representation: Nuanced and Respectful
Hamdan avoids the trap of making her characters representatives of entire cultures. Instead, she presents specific individuals whose Palestinian-American experience feels authentic without claiming universality. The novel’s treatment of immigration, documentation status, and cultural assimilation reflects genuine understanding of these complex issues.
The historical Palestinian sections deserve particular praise for their vivid, respectful portrayal of pre-1948 Palestine. Hamdan captures the texture of village life, the impact of British colonialism, and the tragedy of displacement without reducing these experiences to political talking points.
Areas for Improvement
While generally successful, What Will People Think? occasionally suffers from pacing issues in its middle section. Some secondary plotlines, particularly involving workplace dynamics at Vibe Media, feel underdeveloped compared to the richly detailed family narrative. The resolution of certain conflicts, including Mia’s career transition, happens somewhat abruptly.
The ending, while satisfying emotionally, ties up multiple plot threads in ways that feel slightly convenient. Mia’s career breakthrough and romantic resolution occur in close succession, potentially undermining the novel’s earlier emphasis on gradual, hard-won change.
Literary Merit and Market Position
What Will People Think? positions itself alongside recent successful works like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid and Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid in its blend of entertainment and social commentary. However, Hamdan’s work distinguishes itself through its specific cultural lens and the sophisticated interweaving of historical and contemporary narratives.
The novel’s exploration of Arab-American identity contributes meaningfully to contemporary literary conversations about representation and belonging. Unlike some culturally specific literature that can feel didactic, Hamdan’s work educates through story rather than exposition.
Final Verdict: A Promising Debut
What Will People Think? succeeds as both entertainment and art, offering readers a compelling story while contributing to important cultural conversations. Hamdan demonstrates impressive storytelling instincts, creating characters who feel genuine and conflicts that resonate beyond their specific circumstances.
What Will People Think? is a debut that announces a significant new voice in contemporary fiction—one that promises even greater work to come. Readers seeking stories that combine humor with heart, cultural specificity with universal themes, will find much to appreciate in Hamdan’s accomplished first novel.
For fans of authors like Curtis Sittenfeld and Etaf Rum, as mentioned in the book’s description, What Will People Think? offers similar explorations of women navigating cultural expectations while forging individual paths. It’s a worthy addition to the growing body of literature exploring the third-culture experience with both honesty and hope.
Recommended for readers who enjoy character-driven literary fiction with cultural depth, fans of dual-timeline narratives, and anyone interested in authentic portrayals of Arab-American experience.