A review by zabiume
Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky

challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The writing style was so gut-wrenching and precise, so evocative and vivid, that it really comes alive in the mind's imagination. I liked the way the entire story unfolds like an epic (somewhere between poetry and drama). The author tackles some intriguing themes, like trying to live your life amidst global (or local) political crises – and the complexities of that life as well. A lot of lines were truly beautiful and makes you ponder about human resistance, interconnectedness, hope and faith. Kaminsky captures little nuances or gestures of human behavior that pull you into the poetry and make it very believable. I thought it was very clever how he integrated the semi-autobiographical (his own experience with deafness), with the political (deafness as a form or protest or insurgency).

There were some parts I didn't get, but I think that's entirely a me problem. Overall, this was a short but good read! 
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