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mjminkowich's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.0
cc_loves_books's review against another edition
2.0
I couldn’t get on board with this book, as much as I wanted to. I didn’t connect to any of the characters, and found sitting down to read it excruciating. Finally gave up.
raesbook's review against another edition
challenging
informative
sad
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? Yes
4.0
blairmahoney's review against another edition
4.0
Winner of the Booker International Prize for 2019, apparently this is the first novel by an Omani woman to be translated into English. It's a slow burn but ultimately pretty impressive in its construction, I think, with alternating chapters in first-person narration by one of the characters and third-person narration that shifts its focus onto the other characters. There's a decent smattering of Omani history in there and a flexible approach to time that always keeps you on your toes.
emandeeb's review against another edition
4.0
أرادت أن تقول له :كان أي شيء سيكفيني أي شيء سيملأ حقل قلبي بالثمار النافعة .
أي شيء سيملأ الشلال الموجودة لك وحدك
أي شيء :رسالة ورقية من كلمة واحدة
رنه بعد منتصف الليل منام خاطف لا تولي فيه ظهرك خطوة صغيرة واحدة التفاته بطيئة واحدة .
أي شيء.
حتى زمجرة الغضب حتى تنهيدة ضجر حتى هدية رخيصة .
أي شيء كان كثيرا.
لكن شيئا لم يأت .
أي شيء
والآن كل شيء لا يكفي كل شيء أقل من يبرعم ورقة واحدة في حقل صقعه الشتاء.
ومهما كان الواقع جميلا فبدون الخيال تصبح الحياة ببساطة غير محتملة .
وحاولت أن تفتح صفحة جديدة ولكنها عرفت انه لا توجد صفحات بيضاء في الحياة
رواية رائعة تأسرك من الفصل الأول
الأحداث الكثيرة والشخصيات المتنوعة وأسلوب السرد الفريد واللغة التي تأسر الألباب والبساطة والجمال والألفة ان تعرف عن هذا المجتمع وعاداته وهذه الفترة من تاريج العمان هى ما يجذبك للرواية .
رواية صغيرة وممتعة للغاية
أي شيء سيملأ الشلال الموجودة لك وحدك
أي شيء :رسالة ورقية من كلمة واحدة
رنه بعد منتصف الليل منام خاطف لا تولي فيه ظهرك خطوة صغيرة واحدة التفاته بطيئة واحدة .
أي شيء.
حتى زمجرة الغضب حتى تنهيدة ضجر حتى هدية رخيصة .
أي شيء كان كثيرا.
لكن شيئا لم يأت .
أي شيء
والآن كل شيء لا يكفي كل شيء أقل من يبرعم ورقة واحدة في حقل صقعه الشتاء.
ومهما كان الواقع جميلا فبدون الخيال تصبح الحياة ببساطة غير محتملة .
وحاولت أن تفتح صفحة جديدة ولكنها عرفت انه لا توجد صفحات بيضاء في الحياة
رواية رائعة تأسرك من الفصل الأول
الأحداث الكثيرة والشخصيات المتنوعة وأسلوب السرد الفريد واللغة التي تأسر الألباب والبساطة والجمال والألفة ان تعرف عن هذا المجتمع وعاداته وهذه الفترة من تاريج العمان هى ما يجذبك للرواية .
رواية صغيرة وممتعة للغاية
amberacks12's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.25
I’m still processing this book. And I think I will be for a long time. This book is about so many generations of people whose varying life circumstances work together to weave the tapestry that is the little village of Al Awafi in an Oman that is rapidly changing and modernizing whether it’s people want it or not.
The characters and their struggles were compelling, the complicated family lives were fascinating, and I especially loved the elements of likability and unlikability within each character, making everyone feel like real people.
This is one book that exemplifies why I love reading translated fiction, and why I need to read more of it. This book does not pander to a western audience.
The ins and out of the ways this Omani culture exists is not explained to someone who is unfamiliar. The relationships between family members, spouses, tribes and bedouins, the mentally ill, men and women, mothers and daughters, and yes, even slaves and the families they are in servitude to: all of this is not explained, and it is all different than how I as an American have come to expect, and this book just throws you into the middle of it, expecting you to understand.
I felt like a child trying to understand an adult’s conversation. But that’s also why I loved it.
Enjoyability: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Educational value: 5
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The characters and their struggles were compelling, the complicated family lives were fascinating, and I especially loved the elements of likability and unlikability within each character, making everyone feel like real people.
This is one book that exemplifies why I love reading translated fiction, and why I need to read more of it. This book does not pander to a western audience.
The ins and out of the ways this Omani culture exists is not explained to someone who is unfamiliar. The relationships between family members, spouses, tribes and bedouins, the mentally ill, men and women, mothers and daughters, and yes, even slaves and the families they are in servitude to: all of this is not explained, and it is all different than how I as an American have come to expect, and this book just throws you into the middle of it, expecting you to understand.
I felt like a child trying to understand an adult’s conversation. But that’s also why I loved it.
Enjoyability: 4
Emotional impact: 4
Educational value: 5
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Moderate: Slavery and Pregnancy
Minor: Mental illness
lilyjdist's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
shimmery's review against another edition
3.0
This sprawling story that spans the lives of 3 sisters in Oman (and so many other characters in their family and connected to them that it’s hard to keep track of who everyone is) provides an interesting insight to how Oman changed as it gained independence. While there’s a political level, it’s also very personal, with lots of intertwined stories about love in marriages and in family dynamics. Some really beautiful descriptions of rituals and traditions and I liked the undercurrent of poetry throughout.