Title: Ordinary Obsessions
Author: Tom Corbett
Publisher: Papertown
ASIN: B07RYT8V8Q
Pages: 532
Genre: Fiction
Reviewed by: Aaron Washington

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Tom Corbett’s Ordinary Obsessions is not just any other fiction book; it is far from average. The author wrote a great piece of literature, focusing on societal issues that face students and everyone else that lives with and interacts with people from different backgrounds. It is incredible how subtly the author introduced crucial themes in the book. Tom Corbett wrote baring in mind how impactful words can be. The book is brilliantly written, with the author’s point of focus being identity, education, immigration, culture, religion, politics, and living in the new age. The author used his characters to show how the world can be complicated and diverse.

The start of the book is exciting, starting with the author introducing us to Chris Crawford, an Oxford university student who could be described as clever, uncanny and intelligent. The Einstein and hawking comparison at the beginning is all you needed to know about Chris. The relationship between Azita Masoud, Christopher Crawford, and Amar Singh was amazing. The three had accommodated the immigrant girl like family. Azita’s story was rather sad. Her biological parents had been killed by the Taliban. Life had been extremely difficult for her before she moved to Britain. Being left an orphan and having to flee from her war-torn country of Afghanistan was challenging for her.

Through Azita, we see a strong and determined woman who beat all odds to achieve what she aimed for. Azita was both bright and beautiful. She often ranked among the top students in her class at Oxford University. She was a real beauty with brains and Azita’s story was among my favorite. One thing I loved about her was her ability to go against the norms. I enjoyed reading about her relationship with Benji; a Muslim girl falling in love with a Jewish boy was not viewed as appropriate in some quarters. This, however, did not stop the two lovebirds. Their story showed that love conquers all, even when those in love face opposition. In between the great storytelling in the book lies lessons that are visible to every reader.

The themes the author covered apply in the real world. Relationships between siblings, bonds friends form, family secrets and drama are some of the themes that made the plot captivating. The author also wrote about grim themes such as the effects of war, death, religious extremism and jealousy. Ordinary Obsessions is about breaking barriers, challenging the norms and facing reality. This book will keep amusing you and make you view things differently. The best thing about the plot is how it developed with every new chapter bringing new action and a more gripping story. The author is very talented with his exceptional character creations. Kay, Chris, Kat, Deena, Beverly, Karen, and Azita were all brilliant in their roles. They were distinct and great making readers connect with characters, resulting in Ordinary Obsessions being a thrilling book that will have you engrossed from the beginning.