Structure

Sarfraz Manzoor’s autobiography Greetings from Bury Park is divided into 8 chapters. The chapters are named after 8 songs by Bruce Springsteen, and their titles foreshadow the chapters’ content. For example, the chapter titled “My Father’s House” mainly focuses on the life of Mohammed Manzoor – Sarfraz’s father – and his life as a Pakistani immigrant in Britain. On the same note the chapter titled “Reason to Believe” deals with religion, while the one titled “Blood Brothers” focuses on Sarfraz’s friendship with Amolak. 

Each chapter begins with lyrics from several Bruce Springsteen songs which, in their turn, foreshadow the topics that the chapter is going to explore. For example, the chapter “Blood Brothers” begins with a few lyrics from the song “Bobby Jean” by Bruce Springsteen:

Now we went walking in the rain talking about the pain from the world we hid

Now...