I really enjoyed the laughter. the unlikability of the narrator and the wit that the author uses to really portray the thought process of these old, privileged white men who always seem to think they are the victim. The book is a slow burn leading to a precipice in which everything explodes in the last few minutes. I will be thinking about this one for a while

I KNOW this wasn't written by a white man, but the white male protagonist - with his politics (or "lack" thereof) and his obsession/fetishization of his Pakistani Muslim colleague set around the time of the 2016 election was a struggle to read through.

“The Laughter” unfolds on the campus of the University of Seattle in the months leading up to the 2016 United States presidential election. At its core is the narrative of Dr. Oliver Harding, a 56-year-old English professor, who becomes increasingly fixated on a colleague, Ruhaba Khan, a Pakistani Muslim law professor.

Over time, Oliver forges connections with both Ruhaba and her teenage nephew, Adil. As these relationships deepen, the volatile political climate on campus ignites, placing Oliver in a contentious position with his newfound friends.

This character-driven work of literary fiction delves into poignant themes such as classism, ageing, privilege, and the #MeToo movement. Although not an easy read, the story’s compelling depth and thought-provoking nature held me captive, making it impossible to put aside.

4.5 rounded to 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed The Laughter by Sonora Jha. I was entranced with the premise the entire time. I do not have a single negative thing to say regarding this story except for my hatred for the main character. I felt as though it was very unique. The authors way of writing made me dive deep into the waters of this story. I recommend this book to anyone that likes academia.

Was unable to provide a review based on personal family issues...my apologies to the publishing firm.

“Let me be candid and state that one of the reasons that women of color are asked to do disproportionately high service on committees on the American campus is that men of pallor like me are no longer asked. We have proved to be obtrusive and resistant to change, and have thereby earned ourselves more time sitting back in our offices or getting out to play golf.”

This book is set in the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election. Oliver Harding is a 56 year old English Professor who slept with multiple students, faculty members and women he met on his travels - pretty much everyone. Unsurprisingly, he is divorced and estranged from his grown daughter. He has developed an obsession with Ruhaba Khan, a Pakistani Muslim law professor at the same university. She is about 20 years younger than Oliver. Adil is Ruhaba’s 15 year old nephew. After he comes under the influence of some radical Muslims in France, his mother sends him to America to stay with his aunt. His presence in America draws the attention of the FBI. Oliver assumes that befriending Adil will help him get closer to Ruhaba. Oliver assumes a lot of things about Ruhaba, and so did I. We were both wrong.

I liked this book more and more as it went along. It astutely touched on gender and racial politics in academia (you definitely do not want to show up in blackface at a costume party), a student protest, and the treatment of Muslims in France and America. Oliver was a lecherous, arrogant jerk throughout the book, but he was matched by some of his colleagues. Although we know from the start that something terrible is going to happen in Oliver’s office, the ending was truly shocking to me.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

One of the best books I’ve read in awhile! The writing of the POV is so great. I would highly recommend this to anyone who loves dark academia

This was a really provoking read. This story talks about different issues like privilege, racism, bigotry and more. This book was well written but also makes you feel uncomfortable. The MC was so unlikable and misogynistic that I didnt want to bother continuing the story. 



Thank you NetGalley and HarperVia for this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I really disliked the protagonist, Oliver. I feel like I understand and respect what the author was trying to do. This was a heartbreaking story on many many levels.

Wow, this was such a dark, but incredibly compelling read. It was like a mix of Vladimir (academia, obsession with colleague) and Lolita (being in the extremely disturbed antagonist's mind). The racial dynamics of this one made it a unique read compared to Vladimir from last year. I really couldn't stop reading this deeply disturbing and upsetting book.


4.5 stars.

Oh sweet satire, we love to see it. Especially when it's set in the depths of tenured academia against the backdrop of the impending Trump election. What can go wrong? We know from the get-go that something has gone wrong but it takes nearly the whole novel for it to unravel as our seemingly innocuous narrator shares the story of his brief friendship with a new professor and her nephew. But what started as innocuous quickly and clearly became anything but as we learn more and more about the narrator and his refusal to accept change. Amusing and heartbreaking commentary on academia and Islamaphobia.

Set in the months leading to the Hillary Clinton-Donald Trump elections, Sonora Jha’s latest novel satirizes academia as we follow the obsession of Dr Oliver Harding with Ruhaba, a young Pakistani Muslim professor in Seattle. Her nephew, Adil, has been sent to live with her after protesting against the policy of hijab in France. At the beginning, we see Harding clumsily developing a relationship with his daughter and ex-wife, while obsessing and finding ways to be intimidate with Ruhaba.

What started off reminding me of Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, and Julia May Jones’s Vladimir (still on my TBR) turns into a discussion of feminist rage as students and professors protest and call for a restructuring of the curriculum to accommodate critical ethnic studies. Ruhaba, passionate about this change is deeply involved in the protests while Harding once again pretends to be involved to get closer to her. Harding is nevertheless an unlikeable, morally gray character.

The novel argues that the university is a site of political change. I thought this was perhaps its greatest strength, as students were transformed into activists who wanted to create a change and have a say in their education. It was also the site of white supremacy which threatened violence if the curriculum changed. Higher Ed is also one site where these debates are occurring in states like Florida and Ohio, as I write this.

It explores the themes of racism, Islamophobia, power, gun violence, marital rape and sexual violence, immigration and narcissism in this context. The ending, nevertheless, just blew my mind, and revealed how we often just assume and create an imagined victim in our minds, while things may be different and reveal our own inherent bias that exists within us.

I am looking forward to our upcoming discussion of the novel for the #LetsbeInclusiveBuddyReads with @summer_reads1 and @gymgirlreads on this Wednesday!

Thank you @sonorajha1 and @harperviabooks gifted arc of the novel.

Obsession can morph into many different avenues in life. There is an obsession for the consumption of media and literature, there is an obsession for particular songs or celebrities that bring you joy, there is the obsession for creating something with your life, but there is also the type of obsession that becomes dangerous, like that displayed in the Laughter by Sonora Jha. The Laughter follows Dr. Oliver Harding, a divorced English professor down on their luck. This all changes when a new law professor enters the picture, sending Oliver into a downward spiral of obsession. Dr. Harding will use different avenues and tactics to get closer to the law professor, often putting his morals, or lack thereof, into question.

I found this a fascinating portrayal of the obsession Sonora Jha put forward for us to read. It was often confusing why this obsession started; was it from boredom that morphed into something different for Oliver? While many other things were discussed in this book, I found the beginning slow and stagnant at some points.

I really enjoyed this book. It was chilling, unexpected, and nothing like I’ve read before. I’m curious to learn more about the author’s thought process with writing this book and will be on the lookout for interviews. Overall I think this is worth a read

This is such a sharp story. The perfect book to complete the trifecta of exposing the privilege in academia, the current candidates being Vladimir and My Dark Vanessa. Good literature takes difficult questions and complicates them further, and this is exactly what this novel does with a sprinkling of discussion on race, gender and class.

Frankly, this book exceeds my expectations. THE LAUGHTER is a sharp, biting, irreverent take on America's cultural firestorm and Islamophobia through a tense and compelling academia lens.

Aside from the story and characters themselves, the novel's structure and ending also especially lay bare the reader's own biases and subverts expectations. The hints throughout the book fool you into thinking where it's all heading, only for Jha to pull the rug under your feet in a simple yet so effective a manner.

I also really like how all the characters are imbued with complexity even though it would have been so easy to paint one side completely one-dimensional in service of the other. The book being from the POV of white man in a position of power reveals how messed up the old guard's logic and thought processes can be as well.

Above all, however, this book illustrates for me, for the first time, how intensely claustrophobic and repressive Islamophobia is through Adil and Ruhaba alike. What the former endures, especially, is downright enraging and I admire how Jha is able to make me feel so deeply from her story. I hope this book garners the wide readership it so deserves.

In a genre that is usually ripe with plots of "woman on the verge of obsession slowly descends into madness," THE LAUGHTER subverts that trope by featuring our main character, a male professor, who becomes obsessed with his female Pakistani colleague and uses her nephew as collateral to get close to her.

I enjoyed this one immensely. The writing style is the perfect fit for this type of story, and the author knew what she was doing by casting the characters she cast. If you love an eerie, edge of your seat, "who is in danger here?" kind of feel in your books, you won't be disappointed with THE LAUGHTER.

It’s 2016 and Ollie Harding is a tenured English professor who is infatuated with his colleague, Ruhaba, and focuses almost all of his energy on finding a way to seduce her. On the other hand, Ruhaba’s focus is primarily on her nephew, Adil, who was sent to America from France after he became involved with a terrorist plot as well as on encouraging the shifting politics of the university as students begin to protest around topics of diversity. I contemplated DNFing this a couple of times, because being inside of Harding’s mind is… unpleasant. He’s an out of touch wannabe lothario who treats everyone in his life as the means to his own selfish ends, and it’s clear early on that his perspective isn’t exactly accurate. However, I’m really glad I finished this one, because the ending was surprising and unsettling. Lots here about race, privilege, gender, and how our own desires filter everything!

Thanks to @harperviabooks for this ARC. Out now!

While the subject matter, as an educator, was incredibly difficult, the writing was superb and the author has some great commentary on the academia lifestyle.

The Laughter is a story that resonates with Lolita but has its own flavor and setting. The story is set in a a college campus during the 2016 election. The main character of Dr. Oliver Harding is a repugnant misogynist and so you have to decide if you're willing to take this journey with him. If you do decide to take the journey it will be memorable one and Sonora Jha is definitely an author to watch.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.