filaughn's review
4.0
I went into this knowing that the anthology wasn't exactly classic noir. Mazaa Mengiste said on a podcast that "the noir of it was less about crime and more about intimate or personal terrors or horrors that might creep in from the outside" - and I could see that clearly. I was fine with that, and this is certainly a dark collection with a lot of the elements of noir without ever fully being a prototypical part of the genre.
As with all anthologies, some of these stories work better than others. Mengiste's own stands out as excellent and I added Meron Hadero's upcoming short story collection to my TBR on the basis of her work here. Girma Fantaye's also stood out. There is a strong thread through many of these stories around experiences during the Derg, afterwards, and the national trauma and legacy around that period. Many of the stories also have dark magical realism elements - generally these work really well in the stories, and I appreciated them.
Overall, I don't know if it's technically "Noir" or not, but I highly recommend reading it.
As with all anthologies, some of these stories work better than others. Mengiste's own stands out as excellent and I added Meron Hadero's upcoming short story collection to my TBR on the basis of her work here. Girma Fantaye's also stood out. There is a strong thread through many of these stories around experiences during the Derg, afterwards, and the national trauma and legacy around that period. Many of the stories also have dark magical realism elements - generally these work really well in the stories, and I appreciated them.
Overall, I don't know if it's technically "Noir" or not, but I highly recommend reading it.
abookstereotype1's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This collection of short stories was my first noir and I really enjoyed it!
bizzerg's review
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
sannereadstheworld's review
I always love a short story collection as a way of finding new authors and this collection is a great way to get to know some Ethiopian authors.
As with all collections, some stories grab you more than others, but overall this is a very strong bunch of short stories. The theme of 'noir' is very broadly interpreted - some stories don't necessarily have a crime element, others have supernatural elements, or deal with the traumatic recent Ethiopian history. If you're looking for a collection of purely noir fiction, this is not for you. It is of far more interest for readers wanting to sample works from a wide variety of contemporary Ethiopian authors.
The stories I enjoyed the most in the order in which they appear in the collection:
- Ostrich by Rebecca Fisseha
- Dust, Ash, Flight by Maaza Mengiste
Both of these deal with the trauma of the DERG regime and I love the emotional depth in both stories
- Father Bread by Mikael Awake
I love myself a story with a twist. And this twist was just ... WOW. This story is spooky!
- A night in Bela Sefer by Sulaiman Addonia
This is the best story of the entire collection - perhaps the best short story I will read this year. Queer, disturbing, creepy and perfectly atmospheric. Perfection. Clearly I need to read more by this author!
As with all collections, some stories grab you more than others, but overall this is a very strong bunch of short stories. The theme of 'noir' is very broadly interpreted - some stories don't necessarily have a crime element, others have supernatural elements, or deal with the traumatic recent Ethiopian history. If you're looking for a collection of purely noir fiction, this is not for you. It is of far more interest for readers wanting to sample works from a wide variety of contemporary Ethiopian authors.
The stories I enjoyed the most in the order in which they appear in the collection:
- Ostrich by Rebecca Fisseha
- Dust, Ash, Flight by Maaza Mengiste
Both of these deal with the trauma of the DERG regime and I love the emotional depth in both stories
- Father Bread by Mikael Awake
I love myself a story with a twist. And this twist was just ... WOW. This story is spooky!
- A night in Bela Sefer by Sulaiman Addonia
This is the best story of the entire collection - perhaps the best short story I will read this year. Queer, disturbing, creepy and perfectly atmospheric. Perfection. Clearly I need to read more by this author!
tonstantweader's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Addis Ababa Noir is another edition of the fantastic Akashic Noir collection of anthologies. There are fourteen short stories, though few are what I would normally think of as noir. Maaza Mengiste is a literary writer and most of the stories in this anthology fit more comfortably into literary fiction than noir. Perhaps when the violence of the Derg, war with Eritrea, and ethnic violence remains in living memory, life itself may be noir.
The first and final stories seem to enfold the others, both stories of remaining through the Derg (a brutal military junta that overthrew Haile Selassie) or fleeing into the diaspora. “Kind Stranger” by Meron Hadero is a confessional story told by a stranger to a man returning for a short visit. The confessor recounts his love for a student whom he betrayed to the Derg decades ago and his encounter with her recently. The final story, “Agony of the Congested Heart” by Teferi Nigussie Tafa is narrated by a man in the diaspora, telling the story of his friendship with another man going back to their college years and time in the resistance.
Magical realism runs through this anthology. People turn into hyenas. A bun flies through a city and to another country. Ghosts narrate their deaths. Death haunts Addis Ababa. The editor’s story, “Dust, Ash, Flight” tells the story of a photographer on an international effort to recover and identify the dead in mass graves. “The Ostrich” tells of a woman haunted by a spot on the road where she saw a dead man. The stories are infused with magic.
Addis Ababa Noir was a disappointment for me. It didn’t really feel like noir despite the grim nature of stories. Some of this may be my own failing to appreciate a different literary aesthetic, but for me, too many of the stories seemed unresolved. They just ended. I realize this is a cultural failing on my part to just accept that the idea of story may be very different and what feels unresolved to me may be exactly what is valued there. The stories do create a strong sense of place. Characters are mostly complex and intriguing. There is a lot to like, but my expectations of the Noir series are high.
- Addis Ababa Noir at Akashic Books
- Maaza Mengiste author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2020/10/24/addis-ababa-noir-ed-by-maaza-mengiste/
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