Reviews

Unholy Land by Lavie Tidhar

gelsysuslibris's review against another edition

4.0

Lior Tirosh, un escritor de novelas pulp, viaja de Berlín a su país de origen, Palestina, que se encuentra en África cerca de Uganda, para visitar a su padre enfermo. Una vez allí se ve envuelto en el asesinato de un amigo de la infancia y en la desaparición de su sobrina. Tirosh no es consciente de que hay dos personajes que le están siguiendo, Bloom y Nur, cada uno por sus motivos.

Cuando empecé a leerlo iba con un poco de miedo, por una parte todo el tema de los universos paralelos me atraía pero me daba miedo que fuera una lectura demasiado exigente. Cierto es que es un libro al que le tienes que dedicar atención y leerlo sin prisas, hay que estar un poco atento a los detalles de la narración para poder ir atando cabos. Es un libro extraño, complejo, y que da tantas vueltas y toca tantos temas que, sinceramente, es difícil escribir una reseña.

Una de las cosas que me ha llamado mucho la atención el uso de varios tipos de narradores, que al principio te descoloca un poco pero tiene su sentido. Así como que se trata de un libro de ciencia ficción, una ucronía con viajes a través de diferentes universos a través del misticismo de la Cábala judía. Habla del pueblo judío y de su identidad, pero creo que se puede extrapolar al ser humano. Y a la vez tiene una fuerte crítica y nos habla de la colonización, de los errores del ser humano que se repiten a lo largo de la historia.

La verdad es que me ha sorprendido gratamente y lo he disfrutado muchísimo, saboreando cada una de sus páginas y aunque creo que he captado bastantes cosas, siempre queda esa sensación de que seguro que te has perdido algo por el camino.

He sudado intentando hacer esta reseña, es mejor que leáis el libro y lo entenderéis.

"El mundo es la suma de lo que podría ser, lo que podría haber sido y cómo podría haber sido".

violetaalseide's review against another edition

No era el momento para leerlo. Demadiado complejo, necesitaba algo ligero. Posiblemente vuelva a intentarlo más tarde.

j_wrathall's review

4.0

I really liked this. It is pulpy, and this is clear in the prose - also 'meta' and self-referential, but enjoyably. It doesn't need to be stated, the value of alternative history in this case - well explored. More could be said but better not to have become too overwrought. More a vignette of a thought experiment and fancy than a novel. The afterword brings it together.
Thank you, Aatqa!

bionicturtle64's review

challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

This was not what I expected in a very good way.

I was under the impression this was simply an alt-history story where the Zionist Congress approved the plan to settle a Jewish homeland near Uganda instead of Palestine. And this is that novel - Tidhar writes excellent and fascinating world building to bring state of Palesntina and its version of world history to life. 

But this also a story of multiversal world-hopping which reminded me of This is how you lose the Time War. At times, the prose could be intentionally confusing and vague, but did so show the blurring of realities.

At its heart, this story wants to grapple with the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Whilst I would have enjoyed a book just about the alt-history setting, what Tidhar does with this premise is really unique and impactful. 

That being said, it doesn’t always work. By nature of its story parts were confusing to follow, making this a harder read at points. As well, the main driving force of the main character’s missing cousin was dull, if I’m being honest. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this. 

morvram's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

mrtwinkie's review

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

mschlat's review

2.0

I *should* like this... It's literary science fiction/fantasy about alternate worlds with a laser focus on different versions of Jewish history (starting with a reality where Jews migrated to British East Africa in the early twentieth century). It has a deep abiding love for pulp conventions and some interesting narrative devices with changes of narrators.

But... I found it tough to get into and tough to finish with little payoff on the thriller elements and no real insights from the use of alternate realities.

kennyhannah's review

challenging mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

lauranox's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

thionite's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

5.0