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emily_mh's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This was a really interesting and adventurous MG fantasy that showcased Mesopotamian mythology really well. It was also great at confronting serious issues such as the blame put on oppressed communities in times of crisis, and the experience of grief. Belet was definitely my favourite character as I loved how determined and sharp she was. My biggest criticism is that the pacing was a little slow considering this is 350 pages and a MG read.
As a side note, I listened to the audiobook and the narrator Vikas Adam did an absolutely phenomenal job.
As a side note, I listened to the audiobook and the narrator Vikas Adam did an absolutely phenomenal job.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief, Animal death, Islamophobia, Violence, Racism, Medical content, Gore, Blood, Murder, Child death, and Ableism
Minor: Vomit, Mental illness, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Cancer, Excrement, Physical abuse, Body horror, Confinement, Car accident, Suicide, and Animal death
Pandemic, COVID-19 references, death of a loved one (brother), financial stress, sick parent, insects, refugees/seeking asylum, illness, adoption, HP referencequeer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
4 🌟 CW: violence, descriptions of blood and corpses, grotesque descriptions of organ and other gross things, disease and quarantine mentions, lockdown mentions, Islamophobia, grief, death of a loved one
City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda is a middle grade novel that was gifted to me. This was such a fun read! This was published by Rick Riordan Presents, and is based on ancient Mesopotamian mythology, and it has a Muslim hero!
We follow 13 year old Sik (Sikander Assiz), a Muslim boy working in his parent's deli, wishing he were somewhere else while also still grieving the loss of his older brother, Mo. Life quickly gets turned upside down for Sik after he gets detention for laughing while his classmate, Belet (the only other Iraqi girl in school) argues with the teacher.
Instead of actually going to detention, Sik discovers Belet's mom is actually the goddess Ishtar. Cue the heroes journey.
It was so great to read about a Muslim hero and to read the words 'jihad' and 'Allahu Akbar' without any negative connotation. As someone who loves mythology, it was wonderful to read more about Gilgamesh and other Mesopotamian stories and gods. It also had great commentary on the plight of folks of Middle Eastern descent only getting cast as villains and terrorists, but never the hero or the lead. (Get on this Hollywood).
My favorite character of this whole book was a sword. Yes, a sword. Not only a sword, but a talking scimitar. Kasusu was snarky, sassy, and great at cutting remarks (see what I did there? Cutting? I crack myself up 😂). If Kasusu could only be voiced by one person, it would have to be Billy Porter, because that's whose voice I heard in my head the whole time lol.
I highly recommend this for young readers and anyone who is a fan or Rick Riordan or mythology in general.
City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda is a middle grade novel that was gifted to me. This was such a fun read! This was published by Rick Riordan Presents, and is based on ancient Mesopotamian mythology, and it has a Muslim hero!
We follow 13 year old Sik (Sikander Assiz), a Muslim boy working in his parent's deli, wishing he were somewhere else while also still grieving the loss of his older brother, Mo. Life quickly gets turned upside down for Sik after he gets detention for laughing while his classmate, Belet (the only other Iraqi girl in school) argues with the teacher.
Instead of actually going to detention, Sik discovers Belet's mom is actually the goddess Ishtar. Cue the heroes journey.
It was so great to read about a Muslim hero and to read the words 'jihad' and 'Allahu Akbar' without any negative connotation. As someone who loves mythology, it was wonderful to read more about Gilgamesh and other Mesopotamian stories and gods. It also had great commentary on the plight of folks of Middle Eastern descent only getting cast as villains and terrorists, but never the hero or the lead. (Get on this Hollywood).
My favorite character of this whole book was a sword. Yes, a sword. Not only a sword, but a talking scimitar. Kasusu was snarky, sassy, and great at cutting remarks (see what I did there? Cutting? I crack myself up 😂). If Kasusu could only be voiced by one person, it would have to be Billy Porter, because that's whose voice I heard in my head the whole time lol.
I highly recommend this for young readers and anyone who is a fan or Rick Riordan or mythology in general.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, and Death
grotesque descriptions, disease and lockdown mentions
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