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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
FANTASTIC READ. Highly recommend. Wow. Powerful stuff and not a little bit of a “this could be our future” vibe, particularly with respect to the fossil fuel and environmental implications.
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
not the typical type of book i’d read, very heavy topics. the overall idea is interesting but like i just didn’t care? also the main girl was insufferable, not sure if audio book made it worse but even her name, wtf is a Sarat. i was going to give this three stars but i don’t think i would have finish it if i was reading a physical copy
CW: war, violence, torture.
American War is a dark, complex story. The bottom line seems to be that war is an atrocity where both sides are complicit in horrendous crimes against humanity and the planet. That hatred on both sides is bred from these atrocities, and this hatred creates an endlessly destructive cycle of violence and death. Most compellingly, though, the book illuminates that the US is not so far removed from war-torn countries with "terrorists" and suicide bombers among its own citizenry. With our own history of Civil War and the seemingly insurmountable rift that is growing within our country, this dystopian future is not far-fetched and serves more as a cautionary tale.It is a reminder that the people we Other who are suffering unspeakable violence at the hands of their own countrymen are not so different from us as we might wish to believe.
American War is a dark, complex story. The bottom line seems to be that war is an atrocity where both sides are complicit in horrendous crimes against humanity and the planet. That hatred on both sides is bred from these atrocities, and this hatred creates an endlessly destructive cycle of violence and death. Most compellingly, though, the book illuminates that the US is not so far removed from war-torn countries with "terrorists" and suicide bombers among its own citizenry. With our own history of Civil War and the seemingly insurmountable rift that is growing within our country, this dystopian future is not far-fetched and serves more as a cautionary tale.It is a reminder that the people we Other who are suffering unspeakable violence at the hands of their own countrymen are not so different from us as we might wish to believe.
A dystopian world which is actually plausible, it's a pitch perfect refreshing tragedy. The enjoyment lies in reading the book knowing the absolute bare minimum. A desolate future best avoided.
The year is 2074. The United States, as we currently know it, is virtually no longer. Large portions of the coasts and Florida are gone, destroyed and buried under water due to the disastrous effects of climate change. The North and South have broken off into two warring factions in a second civil war triggered by unscrupulous use of fossil fuels (the North believes in using more environmentally “sound” procedures for harnessing energy, the South adheres to the older methods that rely upon fuel use). A young girl, born and raised in a Louisiana that has all but been swallowed by the gulf, grows up in this tumultuous climate to become of the strongest rebel insurgents the Free Southern States will ever know.
Omar El Akkad’s book, American War, is not typically one that I would be compelled to pick up and read. For one thing, I’m not a huge fan of war novels, or of anything futuristic. My current 2017 reading list (Pop Sugar’s) challenged me, however, to read a novel set during wartime. My eyes fell upon this one while browsing new books at the library, and upon reading the description on the dustjacket and then a few pages in the beginning, I decided to give it a whirl. Not only was I intrigued by the central character of the novel being a woman – despite the fact that we now have so many women in the military, so many war stories and novels still have an air of solid machisimo about them – I also found it interesting that this was the first novel of an author born and raised in Cairo, Egypt, and that his story involved a future America that, chaotic as it might seem, is also frighteningly possible.
Sara T. Chestnut, the protagonist of American War, sets herself apart as a fighter from a young age. As one of a pair of twin girls, she immediately changes her name to “Sarat” to include her middle initial and, as she observes the horrors and ravages of war as they occur around her, duly trains herself gradually to be strong, courageous, and emboldened to face the enemies of the North, or “Blues”, as they are called in contrast to the “Reds” of the South. Her brother joins the rebel fighters of the South, but for all his braggadocio, he has nothing on Sarat, who plots and fights with a cunning and solid intensity throughout the novel. Much as you understand the Free Southern States are really fighting a losing and somewhat ancient battle against the North, you nonetheless find yourself feeling for – and rooting for – Sarat along the way, especially as she fights to clearly avenge the losses she faces of family, home, and in essence, her very own innocence from an early age.
The “what if” scenario El Akkad presents with this book is gripping and page-turning. While his writing could do with a bit of polishing in spots, I felt that this was a pretty solid debut novel. I particularly felt that the end chapters, where the narrative switches from third-person to first-person, was a bit jarring, but it’s almost to be expected, as the prologue (written in first-person) hints that this is to come eventually. Ironically, the most touching moments in the story come in this particular wrap-up at the end (I don’t want to present any spoilers here). There are some truly beautiful moments which bring Sarat’s story to a close, as the United States comes out of the war and is about to enter the year 2100. Sarat is a solid, captivating main character – and an unlikely heroine of sorts.
Overall, American War is a thought-provoking and haunting novel which stuck with me. I can only hope, personally, that we can turn the tide in our nation so that we can avoid fulfilling the prophecy El Akkad sets forth. It’s too disastrous and devastating to even conceive.
Omar El Akkad’s book, American War, is not typically one that I would be compelled to pick up and read. For one thing, I’m not a huge fan of war novels, or of anything futuristic. My current 2017 reading list (Pop Sugar’s) challenged me, however, to read a novel set during wartime. My eyes fell upon this one while browsing new books at the library, and upon reading the description on the dustjacket and then a few pages in the beginning, I decided to give it a whirl. Not only was I intrigued by the central character of the novel being a woman – despite the fact that we now have so many women in the military, so many war stories and novels still have an air of solid machisimo about them – I also found it interesting that this was the first novel of an author born and raised in Cairo, Egypt, and that his story involved a future America that, chaotic as it might seem, is also frighteningly possible.
Sara T. Chestnut, the protagonist of American War, sets herself apart as a fighter from a young age. As one of a pair of twin girls, she immediately changes her name to “Sarat” to include her middle initial and, as she observes the horrors and ravages of war as they occur around her, duly trains herself gradually to be strong, courageous, and emboldened to face the enemies of the North, or “Blues”, as they are called in contrast to the “Reds” of the South. Her brother joins the rebel fighters of the South, but for all his braggadocio, he has nothing on Sarat, who plots and fights with a cunning and solid intensity throughout the novel. Much as you understand the Free Southern States are really fighting a losing and somewhat ancient battle against the North, you nonetheless find yourself feeling for – and rooting for – Sarat along the way, especially as she fights to clearly avenge the losses she faces of family, home, and in essence, her very own innocence from an early age.
The “what if” scenario El Akkad presents with this book is gripping and page-turning. While his writing could do with a bit of polishing in spots, I felt that this was a pretty solid debut novel. I particularly felt that the end chapters, where the narrative switches from third-person to first-person, was a bit jarring, but it’s almost to be expected, as the prologue (written in first-person) hints that this is to come eventually. Ironically, the most touching moments in the story come in this particular wrap-up at the end (I don’t want to present any spoilers here). There are some truly beautiful moments which bring Sarat’s story to a close, as the United States comes out of the war and is about to enter the year 2100. Sarat is a solid, captivating main character – and an unlikely heroine of sorts.
Overall, American War is a thought-provoking and haunting novel which stuck with me. I can only hope, personally, that we can turn the tide in our nation so that we can avoid fulfilling the prophecy El Akkad sets forth. It’s too disastrous and devastating to even conceive.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Got this out a few days ago, and got to page 25 and stalled. Just didn't pull me in, and I didn't understand why there was this split on using fossil fuels or not. Mixed reviews online so I'm not alone.
Too many other TBR things clamouring for my time.
Too many other TBR things clamouring for my time.
The writing style of this book, and many aspects of its storytelling, were pretty decent. Character interactions, the fine detail that makes things real, the anecdote that reveals larger things about who someone is -- that sort of thing was well done. But it had two main problems: I was able to correctly forecast the tragic arc of the novel's main character by the second chapter, and the world-building was so shallow that it undercut the credibility of its setting and characters.
The forecasting problem is simple mechanics of how much we're told up front, and where the focus turns after that. The world-building problem is more systemic; it is set in the late 21st century, yet none of the economy, technology, energy, weaponry and so on has apparently advanced from our own present. The narrative could just as plausibly have begun in the 2020's. Drastic sea rise is mentioned, but climate change has no real impact on the story. (Almost the opposite, in fact: a united North African empire has implausibly become a superpower despite the explicit point that much of North Africa is no longer inhabitable.)
Probably the biggest flaw, however, is the absence of one of the defining characteristics of American history and society: race. It boggles the mind that you could write a novel of a theoretical 2nd American Civil War -- set along roughly the same cultural fault lines as the first -- yet never mention race once. That a recruiter for the rebels could lecture on Southern "pride" and nationalism without even a veiled reference to race. That a black Hispanic lesbian could be embraced by that cause without hesitation or even comment by anyone involved. And so on.
It's particularly baffling that an author -- though not American by birth or upbringing -- who evidently covered the Ferguson, MO protests as a journalist could still lack a comprehension of the influence of race in America. But its glaring absence in this book goes beyond tone-deafness to the point where his characters, their motivations, and increasingly the entire world they are set in (however well-written in a general sense) become hopelessly incoherent. It's a jarring disconnect through which, alas, all this novel's potential power gradually leaked away.
The forecasting problem is simple mechanics of how much we're told up front, and where the focus turns after that. The world-building problem is more systemic; it is set in the late 21st century, yet none of the economy, technology, energy, weaponry and so on has apparently advanced from our own present. The narrative could just as plausibly have begun in the 2020's. Drastic sea rise is mentioned, but climate change has no real impact on the story. (Almost the opposite, in fact: a united North African empire has implausibly become a superpower despite the explicit point that much of North Africa is no longer inhabitable.)
Probably the biggest flaw, however, is the absence of one of the defining characteristics of American history and society: race. It boggles the mind that you could write a novel of a theoretical 2nd American Civil War -- set along roughly the same cultural fault lines as the first -- yet never mention race once. That a recruiter for the rebels could lecture on Southern "pride" and nationalism without even a veiled reference to race. That a black Hispanic lesbian could be embraced by that cause without hesitation or even comment by anyone involved. And so on.
It's particularly baffling that an author -- though not American by birth or upbringing -- who evidently covered the Ferguson, MO protests as a journalist could still lack a comprehension of the influence of race in America. But its glaring absence in this book goes beyond tone-deafness to the point where his characters, their motivations, and increasingly the entire world they are set in (however well-written in a general sense) become hopelessly incoherent. It's a jarring disconnect through which, alas, all this novel's potential power gradually leaked away.