LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE

Exuberant and satirical: this is an angry comedy about Zia's brutal legacy to Pakistan

There is an old saying that when lovers fall out, a plane goes down. This is the story of one such plane.

Why did a Hercules C130, the world's sturdiest plane, carrying Pakistan's military dictator General Zia ul Haq, go down on 17 August, 1988? Was it because of:

• Mechanical failure
• Human error
• The CIA's impatience
• A blind woman's curse
• Generals not happy with their pension plans
• The mango season

Or could it be your narrator, Ali Shigri?

A Case of Exploding Mangoes is sharp, dark, inventive and utterly gripping.