Reviews

This Hostel Life by Melatu Uche Okorie

caoilo's review against another edition

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5.0

An extremely important read, perticularly now when other refugees are being treated so differently. The only remaining factor for the gap in treatment must be race.

Wish I had read this book years ago.

literaryinliverpool's review

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

lerawr's review against another edition

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dark funny informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

rachelosullivan's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

mlreads92's review against another edition

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emotional informative sad

4.0

craykrae's review against another edition

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5.0

As an American, this book is eye-opening of the lives of asylum seekers, who are both forced to live under direct provision and wait upwards 20 months before having their cases heard was upsetting to learn. I highly recommend this book. Everyone should read it. The concluding article is also very informational. Congratulations to Melatu on an impressive piece of work!

blyadele's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

loyloy_bluesky's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

short story collection

this hostel life was difficult to read at the start as it's not written in grammatically correct english, but this emphasised the difficulty of needing to learn another language when seeking refuge in a country like ireland. subtle but with very strong characters who had clear individual voices

under the awning was definitely my favourite, very impactful and i loved the writing inside the writing

the egg broke was written beautifully, i felt so immersed in the story and was devastated by the end. 

really amazing collection!! the preface and essay at the end also added so much to the reading experience by giving that context

eoinbt's review against another edition

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challenging sad fast-paced

5.0

hannahmurphy's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5