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A review by sev32
Brother Alive by Zain Khalid
4.0
Torn between a 4 and a 5 for this one.
This was, and this is no exaggeration, one of the most weird, cerebral, ambitious books I've ever read. I guess a book has to be a bit cerebral to tackle such big topics as the destructive, violent nature of capitalism and "development," the difference between "modernity" and "tradition" as it means for Middle Eastern countries, and the role of Islam itself in all that complexity. The book refused to draw easy conclusions but made lots of astute, believable observations about the nature of these things that at times, conflicted with each other. I think in general Khalid did an amazing job pointing to the bigger complexity.
Even as I've finished the book I find myself confused as to what Brother was, and what role he served throughout the novel. He seemed definitely parasitic, feeding on Youssef and draining him of life force, as well as denying him any intimate relationships with others. On the other hand though, Brother was the only one there for him as he was dying and saved him from pain on a handful of occasions. I guess Brother could be a number of things: a metaphor for some deeper, essential darkness that exists in all of us and makes us fallible and makes us human. I think especially with the issues brought up here Brother kind of reminds me of an inner battle, as with Youssef's lack of belief in Islam and desire not to pray, or his queerness and how difficult it was for him to seek and find romantic relationships.
Another really interesting thing about this book is the structure. The beginning of the novel is a bit more lighthearted as it explores the brothers' boyhood and Imam Salim's eccentricities before giving away to that action-packed middle section exploring their past, which seemed kind of like a different novel entirely. Then you have the tragic ending.
Another thing that kind of bothered me throughout the novel was the fraught relationships between the characters. The brothers obviously love and care for each other, but they often were sort of on the outs from each other, and when Youssef died, Dayo could not do anything to support him. Dayo knew he was destined for bigger things. The scene with the birthday party, where Youssef imagined everyone from his life gathered together celebrating him, was heartbreaking, especially knowing Youssef would die in Saudi and be buried with the rest of his family. Imam Salim always seemed to despise Youssef to a certain extent, extending in the hatred for Youssef's mother, Saba, which Youssef also shared in to a degree because Saba had reported on his father and got him killed. They all were tied together, as the novel mentions, through fate and a common goal, which made them overlook their personal feelings, but it just amplifies the feeling of tragedy that the love in the novel was really only to be found in such fleeting moments.
Whoo. This was a challenging read for me in terms of language and material, but also super rewarding. I'm def switching off to something a little lighter after this one. But excited to see what this author does in the future.
This was, and this is no exaggeration, one of the most weird, cerebral, ambitious books I've ever read. I guess a book has to be a bit cerebral to tackle such big topics as the destructive, violent nature of capitalism and "development," the difference between "modernity" and "tradition" as it means for Middle Eastern countries, and the role of Islam itself in all that complexity. The book refused to draw easy conclusions but made lots of astute, believable observations about the nature of these things that at times, conflicted with each other. I think in general Khalid did an amazing job pointing to the bigger complexity.
Even as I've finished the book I find myself confused as to what Brother was, and what role he served throughout the novel. He seemed definitely parasitic, feeding on Youssef and draining him of life force, as well as denying him any intimate relationships with others. On the other hand though, Brother was the only one there for him as he was dying and saved him from pain on a handful of occasions. I guess Brother could be a number of things: a metaphor for some deeper, essential darkness that exists in all of us and makes us fallible and makes us human. I think especially with the issues brought up here Brother kind of reminds me of an inner battle, as with Youssef's lack of belief in Islam and desire not to pray, or his queerness and how difficult it was for him to seek and find romantic relationships.
Another really interesting thing about this book is the structure. The beginning of the novel is a bit more lighthearted as it explores the brothers' boyhood and Imam Salim's eccentricities before giving away to that action-packed middle section exploring their past, which seemed kind of like a different novel entirely. Then you have the tragic ending.
Another thing that kind of bothered me throughout the novel was the fraught relationships between the characters. The brothers obviously love and care for each other, but they often were sort of on the outs from each other, and when Youssef died, Dayo could not do anything to support him. Dayo knew he was destined for bigger things. The scene with the birthday party, where Youssef imagined everyone from his life gathered together celebrating him, was heartbreaking, especially knowing Youssef would die in Saudi and be buried with the rest of his family. Imam Salim always seemed to despise Youssef to a certain extent, extending in the hatred for Youssef's mother, Saba, which Youssef also shared in to a degree because Saba had reported on his father and got him killed. They all were tied together, as the novel mentions, through fate and a common goal, which made them overlook their personal feelings, but it just amplifies the feeling of tragedy that the love in the novel was really only to be found in such fleeting moments.
Whoo. This was a challenging read for me in terms of language and material, but also super rewarding. I'm def switching off to something a little lighter after this one. But excited to see what this author does in the future.