Reviews

The Attack by Yasmina Khadra

inessova's review against another edition

3.0

Je ne sais pas par où commencer.. Pour moi ce livre a donné deux points de vue sur la guerre en Palestine: la vie vs la mort. Tandis que Dr Jaafri a choisi de guérir, de sauver et de vivre, son épouse a pris la décision de tuer les ennemis de son pays dans un acte de lutte contre l'oppression. Et à travers le livre, on découvre pourquoi elle a fait ce choix difficile pour quelqu'un qui a tout en apparence, tout en ayant son mari, qui malgré toutes les raisons qu'on lui donne ne comprend toujours pas.

Spoiler

Mais on ne nous donne pas d'autres alternatives. Oui c'est anti-héroique de tuer des enfants innocents, pour prouver une position mais c'est contre tout instinct humain de demander à un peuple de ne pas lutter contre une force oppressante. De plus, il n'y a aucun effort de la part des israéliens mentionnés, à compatir à la souffrance qui les entoure. Aucune invitation à demander une vie digne à leurs 'voisins'.

Ce livre est fait pour les occidentaux, et non pour les arabes qui ne connaissent que trop bien les malheurs de cette guerre. C'est tout ce qu'on voit dans les journaux, les TV...

Pour un occidental, je pense que ce livre lui offrira une idée sur les raisons qui poussent des gens en pleine santé à se faire exploser. Ce ne sont pas des excuses, mais ce sont leurs raisons.

Pour conclure, ce livre est très intéressant mais il ne m'a pas satisfait.

arnaud_renaud's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring medium-paced

4.0

holmfridurhp's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

4.0

gabriellemacaire's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.5

ecstasia's review against another edition

1.0

sophistic emotive writing to convince us the good arabs are who surrender to Israel and that palestenians are barbaric ignorant child abusers. The agenda is clear af, despite the very good writing. The author's French is impeccable but i'm not here for the normalization of israel

e4rth2m4rs's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.75

This book made me feel things. The end is brilliant, the author writes so beautifully. The overall message is delivered through dialogues with people from opposing views and allows the readers to make up their minds.

ni57's review against another edition

lighthearted reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

oliviasholmes's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

lale_anic's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

jacki_f's review

4.0

Amin Jaafie is an Israeli Arab and non-practising Muslim who works as a surgeon in Tel Aviv. He is devoted to his wife Sihem and life is good. Until one day a suicide bomber blows up a restaurant - killing 19 people including many children - and all the evidence suggests that his wife is the perpetrator. As Jaafie moves through denial to grief, confusion and anger, he is determined to understand what could have driven his wife to do such a thing. His quest will take him around Israel and the West Bank, allowing us the reader to see the different sides of the Israeli-Arab conflict.

This is a gripping book which is hard to put down. You feel Jaafie's emotions throughout. Like Justin in The Constant Gardener, his need to understand a side of his wife that he didn't previously know about will lead him into dangerous situations.

While there were occasional clunky notes which are probably down to the translation, this is overall a moving and engrossing read.