Reviews

The Orchard of Lost Souls by Nadifa Mohamed

yoshyosh1's review against another edition

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challenging emotional sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

ediercks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

elisabsas's review against another edition

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4.5

"Veste peças que fantasmas deixaram para trás e se torna, ela própria, um fantasma ainda maior, invisível aos passantes, que tropeçam ou pisam nela."

annabarbarabittner's review against another edition

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3.0

Nadifa Mohamed stworzyła ciekawy obraz somalijskiej rzeczywistości podczas wojny domowej w latach 80. Zawiłości konfliktu między wojskową dyktaturą a frontem wyzwolenia stanowią tło dla opowieści o trzech kobietach. Pierwsza z nich to jeszcze dziewczynka o imieniu Deqo. Dziesięciolatka nie zna swojego pochodzenia, żyje w obozie uchodźców samotnie, spędza czas z koleżanką i irlandzką zakonnicą, która troszczy się o setki dzieci.
Deqo wiele tygodni ćwiczyła taniec na występ podczas wizyty prezydenta. Owa wizyta jest ogromnym wydarzeniem propagandowym, na które spędzeni zostają wszyscy mieszkańcy okolicy. Muszą, przyodziani w najlepsze stroje, wiele godzin siedzieć w spiekocie na trybunach i obserwować występy i słuchać przemów. Występ Deqo okazuje się być katastrofą, a wszystkie jej marzenia o wspaniałym tańcu nikną pod razami nauczycielek. Tę scenę z trybun obserwuje Kawsar - samotna wdowa, która wstawia się w obronie dziecka. Ten gest kończy się dla niej więzieniem, gdzie dotkliwie zostanie pobita przez Filsan. Ta ambitna żołnierka wierzy w reżim, wychowana przez samotnego ojca - polityka, na posłuszną dziewczynę.

Mohamed opowiada historię tych trzech kobiet, których życie naznaczone jest przez wojnę domową, każda decyzja zależy od sytuacji w kraju, większości nawet nie mogą same podjąć. Początkowo poszczególne charaktery mnie intrygowały, jednak z czasem zbledły, tworząc z trzech kobiet jedne z wielu.

Ciąg dalszy: https://przeczytalamksiazke.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-orchard-of-lost-souls-nadifa-mohamed.html

somojones's review against another edition

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3.0

A very good book with a good ending.

mbest75's review against another edition

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

4.0

sssnoo's review against another edition

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4.0

Haunting. The Orchard of Lost Souls weaves together stories universal to all women: family, love, motherhood, friendship and layers them into the tragic horrific history of the Somali civil war. When the book ended I audibly gasped and cried. Historical fiction is a favorite genre of mine, but is dominated by European and American themes. My pursuit of reading a book from every country in the world has brought to view the conflicts, struggles and histories of a much wider swath of humanity. I am struck, not surprised though, by the universal themes and conflicts. I am edified by learning the details of regions rarely depicted in our news feeds. This book, by an exiled Somali woman, is written with prose that had me often stop and reread sentences just for the artistry and beauty of the language. In places this book describes the normal (and often dysfunctional as lives are0 day to day lives of the protagonists. Then, the descriptions of the brutality and trauma of war are layered on top. This is how war is - an insidious and also abrupt disruption of normal.

If you enjoy historical fiction this book should be added to your to-read list.

amandatracera's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5
Demorei pra terminar por motivos que não têm muito a ver com o livro, mas gostei bastante da leitura. Gostei sobretudo da metade final.

anitaleest's review against another edition

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inspiring sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

ronald_schoedel's review against another edition

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5.0

I well remember listening to reports of the Somali civil war on the BBC World Service when I was young, and found it hard to imagine that such brutality and violence could exist in our “civilized” age. Of course, I was 12 or so, and not aware of how common war and violence was, in fact.

Reading this was heart-rending and gut-wrenching. The author clearly knows her subject matter and did not shy away from telling the story the world needed to hear about the dictatorship in Somalia, the rebels, the back-and-forth takeovers, and the lives of the civilians so carelessly disregarded by both sides. Knowing what I know now of the civil war, I have no reason to disbelieve the incident described in the book wherein the military rounded up school kids and ordered nurses in the hospital to bleed them dead so that injured soldiers could have the blood they needed. This is only one of many inhumanities described.

In the end, hope and love prevail in this book, which leaves the reader feeling a little more positive than the preceding 338 pages inspired.

I am absolutely glad I read Orchard of Lost Souls, despite the chapter after chapter of tragedy and pain. The world needs to know the actual human price of war.