Daniyal Mueenuddin, This Is Where the Serpent Lives **** 1/2

This Is Where the Serpent Lives is ostensibly a novel by the author of the excellent story collection In Other Rooms. Other Wonders. Like the earlier book, it provides a convincing portrait of characters from various castes attempting to get ahead as the old feudal society of Pakistan gives way under modern and Western pressures. Every detail contributes to a realistic milieu, from the choice of which language to speak to whether you accept your host's offer to sit down.

The book seems like a Russian story that takes place in Pakistan. The subject matter is similar, peasants and landowners, social stagnation and transition, corrupt officials and disappointed dreamers, characters with multiple nicknames and forms of address. Mueenuddin's writing style is extremely Chekhovian. 

While it purports to be a novel, This Is Where the Serpent Lives is actually a collection of linked stories that includes the title novella. The four sections share characters, but they don't enrich each other as they would in a proper novel. For example, the main character in "The Golden Boy" is the orphan Bayazid who eventually becomes the driver for the Atar family. Yazid is also an important character in the title section, but none of his adventures from the first section affect his responses in the last.