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rogermckenzie's review against another edition
5.0
A truly excellent book. I can barely remember reading someone with such a masterful use of the English language who is able to invoke images so vivid as to make the reader feel so completely in the place where Cole is or part of the incident he is describing. I won't name the names of the writers his skills remind me of. That seems more than a little crass and anyway Cole is a very singular writer and, I dare say, individual. The sort of person you would really want to share a very good bottle of wine with to discuss current events or your favourite books. As it happens this book is now high on my list so we could start here and see where the evenings discussion took us.
wicked_sassy's review
5.0
A wide-ranging collection of essays and snippets. Will definitely re-read.
"Heimweh, having been absorbed into standard German, acquired an antonym, fernweh. Fernweh is a longing to be away from home, a desire to be in faraway places. Fernweh is similar to wanderlust but, like heimweh, has a sickish, melancholy tinge. Wanderlust is rooted in the German Romantic tradition and is strongly tied to walking out in nature. Think of Caspar David Friedrich's paintings of a lone hiker in spectacular landscapes, communing with the overwhelming greatness and intimacy of nature. Fernweh is a bit more imprecise. One simply wishes to be far away. Fernweh: the syllables sigh." p. 232
"How not to link it all together? Selma and Ferguson, New York City and Cleveland, torture by the CIA and mass murder in Gaza, the police state and slave patrols: no generation is free of the demands of conscience, and no citizenry can shirk the responsibility of calling the state's abuse of power to account. " p. 278-279
"In the world's assessment of the situation in Palestine, in coming to understand why the Palestinian situation is urgent, the viciousness of law must be taken as seriously as the cruelties of war. As in other instances in which world opinion forced a large-scale systemic oppression to come to an end, we must begin by calling things by their proper names. Israel uses an extremely complex legal and bureaucratic apparatus to dispossess Palestinians of their land, hoping perhaps to forestall accusations of a land grab. No one is fooled by this. Nor is anyone fooled by the accusation, common to many of Israel's defenders, that any criticism of Israeli policies amounts to anti-Semitism. The historical suffering of Jewish people is real--it is in fact one of the most uncontroversially horrific instances of persecution in human experience--but it does not in any way justify the present oppression of Palestinians by Israeli Jews." p. 286
"I became aware for the first time how plant life is part of the story of being in a foreign place." p. 297
"'Africa!' You experience yourself in the particular, and are everywhere received as a broad generality." p. 322
"1- From Sachs to Kristof to Invisible Children to TED, the fastest growth industry in the US is the White Savior Industrial Complex.
2- The white savior supports brutal policies in the morning, founds charities in the afternoon, and receives awards in the evening.
3- The banality of evil transmutes into the banality of sentimentality. The world is nothing but a problem to be solved by enthusiasm.
4- This world exists simply to satisfy the needs—including, importantly, the sentimental needs—of white people and Oprah.
5- The White Savior Industrial Complex is not about justice. It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege.
6- Feverish worry over that awful African warlord. But close to 1.5 million Iraqis died from an American war of choice. Worry about that.
7- I deeply respect American sentimentality, the way one respects a wounded hippo. You must keep an eye on it, for you know it is deadly." p. 340-341
"Heimweh, having been absorbed into standard German, acquired an antonym, fernweh. Fernweh is a longing to be away from home, a desire to be in faraway places. Fernweh is similar to wanderlust but, like heimweh, has a sickish, melancholy tinge. Wanderlust is rooted in the German Romantic tradition and is strongly tied to walking out in nature. Think of Caspar David Friedrich's paintings of a lone hiker in spectacular landscapes, communing with the overwhelming greatness and intimacy of nature. Fernweh is a bit more imprecise. One simply wishes to be far away. Fernweh: the syllables sigh." p. 232
"How not to link it all together? Selma and Ferguson, New York City and Cleveland, torture by the CIA and mass murder in Gaza, the police state and slave patrols: no generation is free of the demands of conscience, and no citizenry can shirk the responsibility of calling the state's abuse of power to account. " p. 278-279
"In the world's assessment of the situation in Palestine, in coming to understand why the Palestinian situation is urgent, the viciousness of law must be taken as seriously as the cruelties of war. As in other instances in which world opinion forced a large-scale systemic oppression to come to an end, we must begin by calling things by their proper names. Israel uses an extremely complex legal and bureaucratic apparatus to dispossess Palestinians of their land, hoping perhaps to forestall accusations of a land grab. No one is fooled by this. Nor is anyone fooled by the accusation, common to many of Israel's defenders, that any criticism of Israeli policies amounts to anti-Semitism. The historical suffering of Jewish people is real--it is in fact one of the most uncontroversially horrific instances of persecution in human experience--but it does not in any way justify the present oppression of Palestinians by Israeli Jews." p. 286
"I became aware for the first time how plant life is part of the story of being in a foreign place." p. 297
"'Africa!' You experience yourself in the particular, and are everywhere received as a broad generality." p. 322
"1- From Sachs to Kristof to Invisible Children to TED, the fastest growth industry in the US is the White Savior Industrial Complex.
2- The white savior supports brutal policies in the morning, founds charities in the afternoon, and receives awards in the evening.
3- The banality of evil transmutes into the banality of sentimentality. The world is nothing but a problem to be solved by enthusiasm.
4- This world exists simply to satisfy the needs—including, importantly, the sentimental needs—of white people and Oprah.
5- The White Savior Industrial Complex is not about justice. It is about having a big emotional experience that validates privilege.
6- Feverish worry over that awful African warlord. But close to 1.5 million Iraqis died from an American war of choice. Worry about that.
7- I deeply respect American sentimentality, the way one respects a wounded hippo. You must keep an eye on it, for you know it is deadly." p. 340-341
guinness74's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
4.25
It took me longer than expected to finish this book. It’s a long collection of essays, but some of them are forceful in their thought provocation. I had to sit with some things, which is the sign of quality writing in my opinion. I didn’t care for some of the essays as they seemed like reviews of art showings, or movies, or something like that, but there are a few, particularly the one on immigration near the end of the book, that are challenging to digest. I very much like Cole’s writing style and I would definitely read more.
marcymurli's review
3.0
I always enjoy reading Cole's gorgeous prose, and this book is no exception. However, there is a bit too much of the book that focuses on his love of photography for my taste. The travel writing is quite compelling, especially when he writes about being in Switzerland and comparing his experiences with James Baldwin's or his travels along the US-Mexico border or in Palestine (which I wish there was more of). One of my favourite essays is the one on the White Saviour Industrial Complex, an essay that remains as relevant and when he wrote it in 2012 in response to the Kony campaign.
pyrokel's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
4.75
This book made me think hard about my place in the world and the everyday choices I make. That may not have been the intent of this amazing collection of essays, but it is how it affected me today.
tombennett72's review against another edition
4.0
Fascinating - my first exposure to Teju Cole’s writing. Which is clear, articulate, interesting and well informed. And therefore very enjoyable.
But I’m not sure that this is really a collection of essays in the true sense.
There are many thoughts within this book, and several extremely interesting pieces. But very often they are an expression of experiences or ideas. I’m used to essays being illuminating and explanatory and this isn’t always the case: always interesting, sometimes nothing more.
I read this book in two quite fast splurges. I bogged down about halfway through and read a couple of other books before coming back to the second half.
Overall, very good, very interesting. Worth reading.
But I’m not sure that this is really a collection of essays in the true sense.
There are many thoughts within this book, and several extremely interesting pieces. But very often they are an expression of experiences or ideas. I’m used to essays being illuminating and explanatory and this isn’t always the case: always interesting, sometimes nothing more.
I read this book in two quite fast splurges. I bogged down about halfway through and read a couple of other books before coming back to the second half.
Overall, very good, very interesting. Worth reading.
hazelnutperson's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
3.75