Through the use of a roman-à-clef, the author is able to create compelling caricatures that take on a life of their own. - Guardian
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Anarchic, erudite and rollicking, with a septuagenarian protagonist like no other, The Selected Works of Abdullah the Cossack is a joyride of a story set against a kaleidoscopic portrait of one of the world's most vibrant cities.

Abdullah, bachelor and scion of a once prominent family, awakes on the morning of his seventieth birthday and considers launching himself over the balcony. Having spent years attempting to compile a 'mythopoetic legacy' of his beloved Karachi, the cosmopolitan heart of Pakistan, Abdullah has lost his zeal.

A surprise invitation for a night out from his old friend Felix Pinto snaps Abdullah out of his funk, and saddles him with a ward - Pinto's adolescent grandson Bosco. As Abdullah plays mentor to Bosco, he also attracts the romantic attentions of Jugnu, an enigmatic siren with links to the mob. All the while Abdullah's brothers' plot to evict him from the family estate. Now he must to try to save his home - or face losing his last connection to his familial past.

"Naqvi colours in a vibrant portrait of the sprawling port city." - Wall Street Journal

"Through the use of a roman-à-clef, the author is able to create compelling caricatures that take on a life of their own." - Guardian

"An uproariously funny, poignant family saga...Touching on the metaphysical, the moral and the absurd, this bawdy epic is a fresh-voiced testament to place, family and the importance of loyalty." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Naqvi here delivers his promised "big, bad comic epic." This exuberant account, featuring a protagonist as unlikely as he is appealing, is a true pleasure for its language and discourses on life, death, and what's in between." - Booklist (starred review)

"A love story, a caper, a family dust-up, a farce - prizewinning Pakistani writer Naqvi's second novel offers all these things, yet they matter less than its lovingly evoked milieu, the uniquely vibrant neighbourhoods and characters, culture, history, architecture, and aromas of the city." - Kirkus Reviews