fkshg8465's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Full of hardships as you might imagine any book about shipwrecked refugees might be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Antisemitism, Police brutality, Bullying, Racism, Death, and Xenophobia
abitbetterbooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I can’t say that I “enjoyed” this book per se but it was really brilliant. I think some people may take it at face value and be upset by the ending and not think more critically about what the author was actually trying to accomplish with this work. If you are able to be confronted with your own bias and appropriately critiqued for holding a whitewashed version of what happens during a migrant crisis, then I think this book is an excellent read.
I think this book is a well-written (thought not perfectly executed) critique of the apathy of the Western world to the suffering of the global south, and points a finger straight at the idea Western exceptionalism. In picking apart this notion that some people are inherently good and want to help, and are willing to make great sacrifice in order to do so, and some people are inherently ignorant, selfish, and hurtful, El Akkad creates a story that is not really about the story or characters themselves and more about making a thematic point.
This isn’t a good thing or a bad thing, it just is a thing that some people may feel differently about when approaching this book. I’d highly recommend the audio, the narrator is one of the best I’ve ever heard.
I think this book is a well-written (thought not perfectly executed) critique of the apathy of the Western world to the suffering of the global south, and points a finger straight at the idea Western exceptionalism. In picking apart this notion that some people are inherently good and want to help, and are willing to make great sacrifice in order to do so, and some people are inherently ignorant, selfish, and hurtful, El Akkad creates a story that is not really about the story or characters themselves and more about making a thematic point.
This isn’t a good thing or a bad thing, it just is a thing that some people may feel differently about when approaching this book. I’d highly recommend the audio, the narrator is one of the best I’ve ever heard.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia and Death
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Classism, Racism, and Death
butlerebecca's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
4.25
Really enjoyed this - I wish there was more character development and there were a few vague details I would have liked to see clarified but regardless 100% recommend this — a very quick read with some beautiful prose and an excellent message
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Death, Colonisation, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Alcoholism
blueteacup's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
tense
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? No
4.5
What Strange Paradise is a challenging novel about the migrant crisis currently happening around the world, specifically tackling migrants from Southwest Asia and North Africa trying to come to Europe. El Akkad uses alternating perspectives between a Syrian child refugee and a Greek teenager to both emphasize cultural and linguistic differences and to portray themes of finding mutual understanding despite these differences.
El Akkad is expertly able to enter the mind of a child and explain what the world looks like to a young boy who is in an unfamiliar place all alone, fleeing from war and strife. He uses fine details to express Amir’s desire to go home despite having no home to go back to, without blatantly stating the obvious. He also uses a wide cast of minor characters to explore differing perspectives on migration and refugee status. From a pregnant migrant woman still desperately trying to hold onto her morals and dignity when it seems everyone else has lost theirs, to a racist colonel afraid of white replacement, El Akkad is able to delve into each character’s mind and portray three-dimensional individuals.
My only gripe with the novel was I found it a bit hard to keep track of all of the characters on the migrant boat, as many were introduced all at once with little intro.
Overall, What Strange Paradise is a very well-written and insightful novel about migration and refugees, with interesting, well-rounded characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: War
Minor: Antisemitism
galexy_brain's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
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
3.5
I am the hopeful, privileged reader, but I didn’t realize until the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, War, and Child death
Minor: Islamophobia, Abandonment, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Deportation, Pregnancy, Racism, Violence, Confinement, Blood, and Religious bigotry
arnold_shelby's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is a moving exploration of humans seeking better futures, of people supporting one another, of tragedy as a normal, daily occurrence that white people turn off on a whim. Challenging and biting, hopeful, and painful all at once.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia and Racism
Minor: War and Vomit
chloe_eags's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, and Racism
katieeyu's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Xenophobia, and Racism
rebeccafarren's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Trafficking, Racism, and Xenophobia
katreads2022's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
I was pretty underwhelmed by this book. On one hand, the prose is amazing and consistent with American War. And then there’s, well, everything else. The characters are nearly caricatures, none of them truly fleshed out other than the cynical smuggler and aspirational Umm Ibrahim. Both the plot and its cast lack originality and seem to regularly lapse into overdone cliché. The message is strong enough to sustain this book which ultimately fails to innovate.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Islamophobia, Police brutality, Racism, and Religious bigotry