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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
Forse servono libri così, libri che scelgono di usare associazioni di immagini ed emozioni (e forse qualche colpo basso), intrecci di vite e dettagli da riannodare, servono libri così per raccontare certe storie più grandi di noi.
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
While it must be acknowledged that this book is written by “another”, telling many stories of the Israeli Occupation of Palestine, it so respectfully focuses on the lives of Bassam and Rami, a Palestinian and an Israeli father respectively, whose daughters were both killed in the conflict. The novel twists you up inside and ultimately leaves you open to learning more, hopefully. This might be my favorite of McCann’s so far.
The acknowledgements of this begins: “This is a hybrid novel with invention at its core, a work of storytelling which, like all storytelling, weaves together elements of speculation, memory, fact, and imagination.”
I realize it’s not at all the same, but as far as format goes this is the thing I’ve read that feels closest to Ducks, Newburyport (still in progress..) While McCann is telling a larger story (and there’s punctuation), he’s doing so in snippets (cantos, apparently) that occasionally follow my own line of thinking while reading. “But what is that exactly?” “Who is this person/how are they related to what’s happening here?” “Oh a picture. That’s nice to have.” As well as thought lines that I never would have come up with but he clearly has, with the detailed research he’s put into the book. Comparisons to other points in history, actions taken, themes. There are remnants of McCann’s other books, research, experiences throughout - NY sandhogs (This Side of Brightness), Romany (Gypsy) notable persons (Zoli), and possibly more.
The acknowledgements of this begins: “This is a hybrid novel with invention at its core, a work of storytelling which, like all storytelling, weaves together elements of speculation, memory, fact, and imagination.”
I realize it’s not at all the same, but as far as format goes this is the thing I’ve read that feels closest to Ducks, Newburyport (still in progress..) While McCann is telling a larger story (and there’s punctuation), he’s doing so in snippets (cantos, apparently) that occasionally follow my own line of thinking while reading. “But what is that exactly?” “Who is this person/how are they related to what’s happening here?” “Oh a picture. That’s nice to have.” As well as thought lines that I never would have come up with but he clearly has, with the detailed research he’s put into the book. Comparisons to other points in history, actions taken, themes. There are remnants of McCann’s other books, research, experiences throughout - NY sandhogs (This Side of Brightness), Romany (Gypsy) notable persons (Zoli), and possibly more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Minor: Torture, War
I'm having a hard time deciding how many stars to give this book. An Apeirogon has infinite sides and this story has infinite sides. I love Colum McCann's writing but I enjoyed some of his earlier books more.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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
A powerful account of the occupation, made more so because of the friendship of Rami and Bassam and their ongoing, joint recounting of their daughters' murders. I found myself repeatedly thinking of the Zimbardo prison experiment while reading this book.
End the preoccupation!
End the preoccupation!
This is an extraordinary novel that plays with structure, is hypnotic and beautiful, and horrifying and hopeful at the same time. Two parents - one Palestinian, one Israeli - lose their daughters in this never-ending conflict. Despite being from different sides, they form a remarkable friendship, of strength and kindness. The novel is told in 1001 vignettes, a bold references to the tales of Scheherazade and the Arabian Nights, flicking forward and backward in time at a dizzying pace, of tangents and footnotes, of factual whimsy and heartbreaking detail of the conflict. As the vignettes count back down to “1” as the count reverses, it feels like vertigo - and it’s a true sadness to realise that yes, this is a reading experience that will not resolve itself. This book has made me think so much - about the universality of parenthood, of the dirtiness of war, and the infinite ways stories can be told, constructed and reconstructed. Even the title is clever: a shape with infinitely countable sides. Knowing that the two men, Rami and Bassam, are real people, makes you feel like you’re glad you’ve just born witness to their experience.
“294. Just exactly how, Bassam wondered later, would Spielberg have filmed the rubber bullet flying through the air? Where would he have placed the camera? How would he have framed the sharp turn of the Jeep on the street? How would he capture the crunch of the wheels? How would he portray the slide of the small metal grate in the rear door? The burst of light onto the border guard’s face? The inside of the Jeep, the mess of newspapers, the uniforms, the trays of ammunition? The emergence of the M-16 through the rear door? The curl of the finger against the trigger? The shell emerging from the candy cane of grooves? The rifle’s kick into the border guard’s shoulder? The bullet’s spiral through the sharp air? The shot sounding out against the school bells? The crash of the bullet into the back of Abir’s head? The vault through the air of her leather school bag? The shape of her shoe as it flew off her foot? The twirl of it? The tiny bones being crushed at the back of her brain? The delay of the ambulance? The gathering at the hospital? The flatline of the machine?
“294. Just exactly how, Bassam wondered later, would Spielberg have filmed the rubber bullet flying through the air? Where would he have placed the camera? How would he have framed the sharp turn of the Jeep on the street? How would he capture the crunch of the wheels? How would he portray the slide of the small metal grate in the rear door? The burst of light onto the border guard’s face? The inside of the Jeep, the mess of newspapers, the uniforms, the trays of ammunition? The emergence of the M-16 through the rear door? The curl of the finger against the trigger? The shell emerging from the candy cane of grooves? The rifle’s kick into the border guard’s shoulder? The bullet’s spiral through the sharp air? The shot sounding out against the school bells? The crash of the bullet into the back of Abir’s head? The vault through the air of her leather school bag? The shape of her shoe as it flew off her foot? The twirl of it? The tiny bones being crushed at the back of her brain? The delay of the ambulance? The gathering at the hospital? The flatline of the machine?
Me costó muchísimo entrar en esta lectura. De hecho, estuve a punto de abandonarla. Y no porque el tema no me pareciera interesante, sino porque presenta muchísima información, de manera fragmentada, a modo de entradas, por lo que me costó mucho captar para donde iba la trama y, sobre todo, conectar con ella.
La historia, real por lo demás, se centra en las figuras del israelí Rami y el palestino Bassam, supuestamente enemigos según sus lugares de origen, pero con un dolor común: la pérdida de una hija por culpa del conflicto. Ambos eligen la paz por sobre el odio y juntos recorren el mundo dando a conocer su posición.
Los relatos de los protagonistas se van intercalando con muchísimos datos, que incluso pueden parecer bizarros, representando la construcción de un apeirógono - un polígono con un número infinito de lados (entrada 102) – y demostrando lo difícil que es narrar el conflicto palestinoisraelí (y cualquier conflicto creo yo), debido al sinnúmero de aristas que tiene.
Menos mal que me empeciné en seguir. Los fragmentos de relato, al parecer aleatorios, nos van preparando para el clímax de las entradas 500, las que significaron el punto de no retorno y me metieron de lleno a la lectura de esta original novela.
No le pongo las 5 estrellas, que creo que se merece, porque sería injusto para mí. Es un libro con el que me costó enganchar y que no es para cualquier lector, pero por el que sin duda vale la pena perseverar.
La historia, real por lo demás, se centra en las figuras del israelí Rami y el palestino Bassam, supuestamente enemigos según sus lugares de origen, pero con un dolor común: la pérdida de una hija por culpa del conflicto. Ambos eligen la paz por sobre el odio y juntos recorren el mundo dando a conocer su posición.
Los relatos de los protagonistas se van intercalando con muchísimos datos, que incluso pueden parecer bizarros, representando la construcción de un apeirógono - un polígono con un número infinito de lados (entrada 102) – y demostrando lo difícil que es narrar el conflicto palestinoisraelí (y cualquier conflicto creo yo), debido al sinnúmero de aristas que tiene.
Menos mal que me empeciné en seguir. Los fragmentos de relato, al parecer aleatorios, nos van preparando para el clímax de las entradas 500, las que significaron el punto de no retorno y me metieron de lleno a la lectura de esta original novela.
No le pongo las 5 estrellas, que creo que se merece, porque sería injusto para mí. Es un libro con el que me costó enganchar y que no es para cualquier lector, pero por el que sin duda vale la pena perseverar.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
informative
everyone should read this book. great way to understand more of the conflict in gaza and Palestine.