Reviews with content warning for War - Frankenstein à Bagdad

Honestly, one of the finest adaptations of classic literature into modern sociopolitical contexts. I highly recommend this to anyone who either enjoys the creature feature genre or just in general is looking to expand their adult fiction and horror bookshelf. So many of the characters are complex that equally measures that they are written with deep respect to each person's humanity. That being said there are quite a handful of characters who I could have lived without but were essential for the plot and overall were enriching. An incredible dive into the moral and philosophical nature of death, murder, criminality, and victimhood within the context of war and loss. This has become one of my favorite books nearly overnight.

Content Warnings

laurenbookwitchbitch's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

jsuispoesie's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

elysephone_escapes's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

more speedreading for my essays - one day I'll actually be on top of everything

Content Warnings

abbie_'s review against another edition

Go to review page

dark reflective sad slow-paced

3.0

I struggled with this one for a good 40% but I thought the pay off would be worth it so I kept at it - and I was sort of right! It did get a lot easier to keep track of the large cast of characters, and I became more invested in the story. Like a lot of reviewers, I’m confused by the ‘horrifically funny’ tagline on the cover (what did you read, Brian Van Reet??), as it’s ultimately a very bleak and dark book about war, violence begetting violence, the line between criminality and innocence. While I’m glad I persevered, I also came away feeling like I’d missed something - probably just the more philosophical parts going over my head!

Content Warnings

almalotus's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

addyruth17's review against another edition

Go to review page

informative mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The application of the ideas surrounding Frankenstein were intriguing here: vengeance, guilt and innocence, humanity's collective anger and grief. The rest of the book didn't really live up to the promise of this premise: I'd say there were too many plot lines and I wasn't very invested in any of them. The clunky translation also brought the reading experience down.

Content Warnings

More...