An extraordinary debut by Meg Mullins, THE RUG MERCHANT centers on
an Iranian immigrant, Ushman Khan, who sells beautifully crafted
rugs to wealthy Americans in New York. His wife Farak continues to
live in their hometown of Tabriz where she personally picks out the
rugs that will be shipped to America, and Ushman subsequently sells
for thousands of dollars a rug.

Ushman and Farak have tried many times to have a child of their
own, but Farak had suffered through too many miscarriages, the last
one occurring during the big quake in Iran a few years ago. After
that, Farak gave up trying. Ushman goes to America to find a better
life for them, but instead he finds loneliness and a wife who does
not seem to want to be with her husband. She finds excuses not to
follow him to America, mainly using his ailing mother as the reason
why she must stay in Iran.

Farak finally informs Ushman that she is leaving him, but he cannot
accept the news, especially the shocking reasons why she's
divorcing him. His life had always revolved around his love for
Farak, and he cannot believe that his marriage is over. One night
he goes to the airport on a whim and watches the people around him,
dreaming of Farak coming off a plane to finally join him in
America. Instead, he meets a young woman named Stella, a freshman
at Barnard College. Despite their age and cultural differences,
this meeting leads up to a rather unusual friendship.

By this time, Ushman's knowledge of America is still very limited,
and he is constantly overwhelmed and confused as to what is proper
behavior in this country. Stella represents a huge contrast to the
type of woman he is familiar with, and in his mind he often
compares her to Farak, who he still refers to as his wife. Stella
is as free as one her age can be, with ethics and moral standards
that are far from what Ushman is used to. Yet he knows he is now in
America and is allowed to do things such as look at women who are
not covered up from head to toe, and that even a one-night stand is
not frowned upon. Ushman is attracted to the free-spirited Stella,
who teaches this lonely man what it is like to be an
American.

In the meantime, Ushman continues his business of selling exotic
rugs, his most frequent customer being the wealthy Mrs. Roberts,
whose husband appears to be an invalid. Their relationship is akin
to that of master and servant, and Ushman tries his best to behave
the way she expects. However, things happen to make him wonder what
Mrs. Roberts is really feeling toward him, as she seems to be
reaching out to him for more than just a business relationship.
While a friendship is far from what is evolving, their behavior
around each other hints to a type of association that may diverge
from their original business relationship.

As the friendship between Ushman and Stella progress into something
serious, Ushman's world begins to change. But he still has Farak in
the back of his mind, always reminding him of his past. Things come
to a head when a tragic event occurs in Mrs. Roberts's home while
Ushman is there doing business, and it becomes another turning
point in Ushman's life in America.

THE RUG MERCHANT is a complex tale that focuses more on behavior
and feelings than on actual action and events. Meg Mullins does a
wonderful job describing the immigrant experience, writing this
story with a delicate prose that brings out the sensations of
loneliness and that of being an outsider in a foreign land.
Ushman's awkwardness and confusion are detailed in exquisite form,
and the reader will truly feel embarrassment and maybe even a sense
of protectiveness toward this man who wants desperately to live the
American dream yet feels out of his element. His love for Farak is
near tragic, as he has no control over what is happening with her
because she is so far away. By moving to America, he essentially
gives up his rights, so to speak, to be her Iranian husband;
divorce would never have been permitted if he had remained in his
homeland.

Mullins's auspiciously wonderful debut is highly recommended and I
anxiously await her next novel.