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kduhy's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Season of the rain birds is set in a small town in Pakistan as the monsoon season begins. However, sometimes, what the blurb says doesn't meet up with the story within. Led to believe this book was going to be about a murder and the fall out from a bag of letter discovered after 19 years, you will be disappointed. yes they are in the book but they are not the main focus.
This book felt more like a memoir of the authors early childhood. Aslam has brought to life -the daily comings and goings, gossip, the feelings and thoughts, events and society beliefs with some lovely detail. Politics and corruption run through the daily life of this mainly muslim community.
This book felt more like a memoir of the authors early childhood. Aslam has brought to life -the daily comings and goings, gossip, the feelings and thoughts, events and society beliefs with some lovely detail. Politics and corruption run through the daily life of this mainly muslim community.
shadybanana's review against another edition
5.0
I was aware of Nadeem Aslam's existence. I just hadnt found any of his books in any bookstores I'd been to. And then this beautiful cover caught my glance, and I knew I just had to buy it. The premise is very intriguing but thats about it. Half-way through the book, I knew I was going to give it a three star or maybe a four, if I were to be generous. After all, there was no plot in sight, there were just threads of dialogues and loose story points going about and around. And then I finished the book, and decided to give it a 5 star. Oh the ending wasnt that fantastic. If anything you cant call that ending a 'ending', there was no closure, and I dont mind that because by then I'd realised something. This book wasn't about some plot. This book was about the characters, the background to the story and the theme prevalent throughout the book. The descriptions are just so breath-taking. I wish I'd the stamina to type one of the many beautiful lines from the book here but I dont. The characters and their actions they really make you think and question human nature. That being said, this book and I suspect all of Nadeem Aslam's books might be for a very specific targetted audience. If you're from subcontinent, you will love it. If you want to know what life is like here, oh boy will you know after reading this. And if you fall into neither category, and you still want to read this book then you wont be disappointed. The shifting paradigms and the ironical behaviours that are so inherent in our nature combined with mesmerizing writing, and just a wee bit of religious extremism will keep you addicted to this
vanvicki's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
haidan's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
bravesirtoaster's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
chrysalis11's review against another edition
4.0
Written in Aslam's signature poetic style, the story had me captivated. I wish the ending had had more of an impact on me, like 'Maps' and 'Wasted Vigil' did. But nevertheless, the story had me spellbound, as he usually does. Like with most of his novels, the rain, the water lizards, the letters, all these elements are like characters in the story, having a life of their own. That's the beauty of his writing! You can see every scene, see every bit, right before your eyes...
mslaura's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
kentcryptid's review against another edition
4.0
I'm in love with Nadeem Aslam's prose and his skill at creating sense of place, but the structure of this one (his first book) is a little bit odd. There are a very large number of characters to keep track of, and the book gets to the end and just... stops. If you're interested in reading something absolutely brilliant set in Pakistan, I'd start with The Golden Legend, and then come back to Season of the Rainbirds afterwards.
boipoka's review
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
It's difficult to rate this book.
On one hand, the writing is pretty good - the language beautiful and poetic without being flowery, all the characters were very real, with all the complexity of real human beings. The monsoon season was deftly utilized to build a backdrop of hope mixed with gloom (the season is like that, there's hope the scorching summer is over and everything is green again, but it's also dank and smelly and gloomy). It felt like I was transported into this village for a little while.
On the other hand, nothing is resolved here. At all. I generally enjoy "slice of life" fiction, but this was too much for me. Nothing mattered. The murder didn't matter. The long lost letters didn't matter. The political machinations didn't matter. It truly felt like I was transported to this very specific time and place for a week, and transported back just as thing were getting interesting. It's one thing if nothing happens, but a lot happens here - just nothing is ever resolved in the slightest. It was annoying.
Overall, I think my annoyance wins out over my enjoyment of the writing
On one hand, the writing is pretty good - the language beautiful and poetic without being flowery, all the characters were very real, with all the complexity of real human beings. The monsoon season was deftly utilized to build a backdrop of hope mixed with gloom (the season is like that, there's hope the scorching summer is over and everything is green again, but it's also dank and smelly and gloomy). It felt like I was transported into this village for a little while.
On the other hand, nothing is resolved here. At all. I generally enjoy "slice of life" fiction, but this was too much for me. Nothing mattered. The murder didn't matter. The long lost letters didn't matter. The political machinations didn't matter. It truly felt like I was transported to this very specific time and place for a week, and transported back just as thing were getting interesting. It's one thing if nothing happens, but a lot happens here - just nothing is ever resolved in the slightest. It was annoying.
Overall, I think my annoyance wins out over my enjoyment of the writing
gnoe's review against another edition
3.0
"It was raining. Crickets sang. Darkness and silence pressed down on the huddled street; and for a brief confused moment Dr Sharif was unable to distinguish between the two." [p152]