Synopses & Reviews
At the heart of Meg Mullins?s debut novel is one of the most touchingly believable characters in recent fiction, a gentle soul in the body of an Iranian exile in New York. Ushman Khan sells exquisite hand-woven rugs to a wealthy clientele that he treats with perfect rectitude. He is lonely, and his loneliness becomes unbearable when he learns that his wife in Iran is leaving him. But when a young woman named Stella comes into his store, what ensues is a love story that is all the more moving because its protagonists understand tragedy.
The Rug Merchant will sweep readers away with its inspiring, character-rich tale about shaking free from disappointment and finding connection and acceptance in whatever form they appear.
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A powerful experience that does what all good literature should: it tells us a little more about what it means to be human. (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Review
Beautifully written and at times hilariously funny . . . an enduring and poignant portrait. (The Baltimore Sun)
Review
[Mullins] has imagined a tale as nuanced and alluring as the hand-woven patterns of the rugs that are at the heart of UshmanÆs American life. (
Chicago Tribune)
About the Author
Meg Mullins earned her MFA at Columbia. The story that formed the basis of this novel appeared in the Best American Short Stories in 2002.