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bashsbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I must confess, I was never a huge fan of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. I reread it over and over again in high school and college, and I could never get into it. Something about the text was too dense and archaic for me to connect to - which is not normally a problem I have with classics.
When I came across Frankenstein in Baghbad, I thought the concept of a surrealist look into early Iraq War era Baghdad was an interesting concept, but I was skeptical that I'd find the same stumbling blocks with this version as the original. After all, it takes place in a time and setting very different from my own, just like Shelley's original.
But Saadawi's work is different. I realized pretty quickly that this book is much, much closer to my time and place than I thought it would be. It demonstrates, with an unparalleled hand for metaphor, the monster that is the cycle of revenge which makes up the wheels of war.
When I came across Frankenstein in Baghbad, I thought the concept of a surrealist look into early Iraq War era Baghdad was an interesting concept, but I was skeptical that I'd find the same stumbling blocks with this version as the original. After all, it takes place in a time and setting very different from my own, just like Shelley's original.
But Saadawi's work is different. I realized pretty quickly that this book is much, much closer to my time and place than I thought it would be. It demonstrates, with an unparalleled hand for metaphor, the monster that is the cycle of revenge which makes up the wheels of war.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Misogyny, Torture, Police brutality, and Classism
Minor: Sexual content, Suicide, Car accident, and Sexual harassment
-Suicide bombing, explosions -Corpses -Mutilationlaurenbookwitchbitch's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’ve been on a big reinterpretation of Frankenstein kick so I had to read “Frankenstein in Baghdad,” translated from Arabic. In the midst of the Iraq War a junk dealer begins to sow human body parts together from people killed in bombings. What follows is a gut wrenching tale of chase and pursuit, grief and saints, war and friendship, death and destruction. A powerful story about what it takes to create and maintain life in the worst of war zones.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Classism
cviii's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Dementia, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Xenophobia and Stalking