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feingartner's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This was heartbreaking and uplifting in the best of ways. An astute portrait of a family disrupted by an abusive dad. I couldn’t sleep after reading bc the book invoked a lot of childhood memories. A feast, 90s nostalgia included. Pls check CW before reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Islamophobia, Xenophobia, and Child abuse
lauren_mansfield0201's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Islamophobia, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse
aliciawithoutkeys's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
Moderate: War and Islamophobia
memoirsofabooklover's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this story was beautiful. the story of the main character was heartbreaking to follow.
wasn’t a fan of the writing style. no chapter titles, and no quotation marks for when someone is speaking. also, scenes often felt unfinished, like being left hanging without resolve. didn’t particularly enjoy that chapters often skipped months or years ahead, and sometimes it took a while of confusion to figure it out.
overall i did really enjoy it and was quick to read. the ending was hopeful, even though it felt incomplete, it also felt realistic.
wasn’t a fan of the writing style. no chapter titles, and no quotation marks for when someone is speaking. also, scenes often felt unfinished, like being left hanging without resolve. didn’t particularly enjoy that chapters often skipped months or years ahead, and sometimes it took a while of confusion to figure it out.
overall i did really enjoy it and was quick to read. the ending was hopeful, even though it felt incomplete, it also felt realistic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Incest, and Islamophobia
Minor: Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, War, Xenophobia, Blood, Drug use, and Cursing
neena12483939459's review
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Violence, and Sexual assault
Minor: Blood
sakisreads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I was thrilled to have a chance to read this, because I’d been eyeing it up from time to time and then got gifted it by a friend 🥹
Unfortunately, it wasn’t the mind-blowing tale I was expecting. However, the calmness in which the narrator discusses his and his family’s lives were poignant ✨ There was a particularly difficult part (content warnings are included below), but there was more joy than I expected. This family, working towards the supposed ‘American dream’, have so much love to give to each other ❤️
I also enjoyed Johnny’s appearances throughout the story. I thought he was a buoy for our narrator when sometimes the narrator seemed to be ‘drowning’.
3.5 out of 5 stars for me. Thank you ✨
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Child abuse, and Toxic relationship
abbie_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my free digital ARC in exchange for a review!
I Will Greet the Sun Again is a gorgeous and heartbreaking portrayal of a queer Iranian-American boy’s coming of age, set against the backdrop of 9/11. This is Khabushani’s debut but his prose is assured and he paints an extraordinarily vivid picture.
I Will Greet the Sun Again is a gorgeous and heartbreaking portrayal of a queer Iranian-American boy’s coming of age, set against the backdrop of 9/11. This is Khabushani’s debut but his prose is assured and he paints an extraordinarily vivid picture.
I loved the depiction of awkward adolescence, which alternates between cute and bumbling and more serious tones. The sensory details are so vivid that you feel like a fly on the wall. You can feel the slightly oppressive atmosphere of their LA flat where three teenage boys are sleeping, smell the chai in the kitchen, sense the ominous shift in the air when their father gets home. When the boys are whisked away to Iran by their father, furious at the effect America is having on his boys and wife, the atmosphere changes but is just as well written. The noisy chaos of the airport, the bedlam of the roads where it’s every driver for himself, the sleepy, peaceful ambience of their grandfather’s house, embodied by afternoon naps on the terrace and the scent of ripe figs (though things become less idyllic at night).
The book focuses more on father / son dynamics (content warning for childhood sexual abuse), and I did want a little more from their mother whose story would warrant a book of her own. Khabushani manages to deliver emotional gut punches and explore sensitive topics, but avoids the common pitfall of beating the reader over the head with trauma porn.
A moving debut that highlights those who feel they must suffer in silence, the ups and downs of brotherhood, the balance between multiple aspects of identity (queer, Muslim, Iranian-American) written in lovely prose. Out on 3rd of August in the UK!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Islamophobia
bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
No quotation marks for when characters are speaking which could be confusing at times. Also confusing time jumps skipping years at a time without any indication until mid paragraph.
Despite the slow start, the writing and maybe formatting makes for a quick read as I read the first half in a single day. But I decided to DNF because I don’t want to finish just because I’m halfway through and its an easy enough book to read. The writing style and storytelling just wasn’t working for me as it was dull and lacked depth.
I don’t mind character driven books as long as there’s either some small underlying event being worked toward or obvious character development. I couldn’t see any obvious developments and the story didn’t seem to flow but was more snapshots of small scenes being shown before moving onto something different.
I also usually love emotional, darker themed novels and the synopsis sounded like something I’d love but this isn’t doing it for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Incest, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Sexual content
ikristinaj's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse