Overview

Uploader's note: The narrator, Lisa Ray is the actress that plays Tala in the movie.

Tala is preparing for her elaborate Middle Eastern wedding when she meets Leyla, a young woman who is dating her best friend.

Spirited Christian Tala and shy Muslim Leyla could not be more different from each other, but the attraction is immediate and goes deeper than friendship. Moving between Middle Eastern high society and London’s West End, this story explores the clashes between East and West, love and marriage, and convention and individuality creating a humorous and tender tale of unexpected love.

Original book blurb:

Tala, a London-based Palestinian, is preparing for her elaborate Middle Eastern wedding when she meets Leyla, a young British Indian woman who is dating her best friend.

Spirited Christian Tala and shy Muslim Leyla could not be more different from each other, but the attraction is immediate and goes deeper than friendship. But Tala is not ready to accept the implications of the choice her heart has made for her and escapes back to Jordan, while Leyla tries to move on with her new-found life, to the shock of her tradition-loving parents.

As Tala's wedding day approaches, simmering tensions come to boiling point and the pressure mounts for Tala to be true to herself.

Moving between the vast enclaves of Middle Eastern high society and the stunning backdrop of London's West End, I Can't Think Straight explores the clashes between East and West, love and marriage, conventions and individuality, creating a humorous and tender story of unexpected love and unusual freedoms.

Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Listening Length: 5 hours and 34 minutes

Narrator: Lisa Ray

Audible.com Release Date: May 23, 2016

About Shamim Sarif

Writer and director Shamim Sarif is an award-winning novelist, screenwriter and director for film and TV. Her debut novel, 'The World Unseen' won the Pendleton May First Novel Award, and the Betty Trask Award.

Her new book, The Athena Protocol, is an all-female action thriller released by HarperCollins in October 2019 as the first in a Young Adult series. The book is currently being developed for the screen.

Shamim’s most recent feature as writer/director is Despite the Falling Snow, which released in the US in March 2017. The movie stars Rebecca Ferguson and Charles Dance and is based on her acclaimed second novel published by St Martin’s Press and Hodder.

Her first feature film as writer/director, ‘I Can’t Think Straight’ won 11 awards. Her follow up movie ‘The World Unseen’ based on her award-winning book, debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival before garnering 23 awards internationally.

An accomplished speaker, Shamim has spoken at TED events worldwide, at the INK Conference in India and DLD in Munich. Corporate speaking events have included Deloitte, Goldman Sachs, Citibank and Disney.

Shamim is a member of the Society of Authors, the WGA, BAFTA and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

About Lisa Ray

LISA RAY is an Indian-Canadian actress, model, television host, philanthropist and social activist. She divides her time between Mumbai and Nelson, BC.