A review by clairebartholomew549
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I have been hearing about this book for months, and it more than delivered. Akbar explores such heavy and difficult topics: making sense of senseless tragedy, feeling like your life has no meaning in the face of state violence and horrible circumstances, existing and surviving in a country that is deeply xenophobic, Islamophobic, and racist, being unable to accept the love of those around you when you can't love yourself (cliche of course, but a universal truth and beautifully articulated here), and the power of art to expose our deepest vulnerabilities. But Akbar's voice is so witty and sharp that you never feel weighed down, and the pace is brisk and flows well. I felt a deep attachment to Cyrus right away, and getting other characters' perspectives added so much color and context to who he was. The interludes also were incredibly impactful: Akbar's poetry about different martyrs is visceral and informative, and the snippets of the US' dismissive response to their "mistaken" shooting down of an Iranian passenger plane are a searing indictment of the US' inability to ever take accountability and its commitment to seeing non-Western countries' inhabitants as other and inhuman. This book is just incredibly well done.
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