Reviews

Beneath the Lion's Gaze by Maaza Mengiste

hbelle01's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a heart wrenching, painful read. I have not read about this conflict, but this was a horrifying glimpse into people’s realities. Make sure you’re in the right headspace for this.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: War

Minor: Rape

lepasseportlitteraire's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

3.5

In this touching novel, we follow an Ethiopian family during the violent 70’a revolution. A family with their components so different from each other, but all affected by one tragic event after the other.

I found that it provides a well-balanced narrative, resulting in a book that is both historically informative and plot-driven.

However, while I enjoyed the reading and do recommend it, there were some aspects of the novel that bothered me and which are the reason this will not enter my best reads of this year.

First of all, the alternate POV is a little too quick to my taste, and I felt we do not get enough time with each character: I think it is one of that books that deserved to be longer. Moreover, many secondary characters deserved more space and their storylines were quickly explained and closed in just a couple of lines. Finally, I felt that the POV is mainly masculine, and the women in the story did not get as much storyteller time as the men. 

Still, it is a relevant book that will emotionally engage you, all in a historical setting that does not get much space in literature.

jules_25's review

challenging dark emotional informative 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

4.25

roisinsreading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

ciikum's review against another edition

4.0

4.5 stars ⭐️ for me. This book is a slow burn, but one that history buffs like me will enjoy. This is a fictional account of the revolution that happened in Ethiopia in 1974, seen both in the microcosm of the country and one family, with different reactions between two brothers, their father and the wife of one them together with the neighbors. Our reactions in life can never be the same even with our closest kin and misunderstandings can happen from the point of not understanding where another is coming from.

There are more recommended readings by the author, that would bring more understanding and knowledge about Ethiopia. The country that fought off colonialists successfully and remains one of the uncolonized.

belovedsnail's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Absolutely searing look at the revolution in Ethiopia and the rule of the Derg. Brutally difficult to read but so hard to put down.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture and Murder

Moderate: Rape

viis97's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

thestarlessbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

100booksyearly's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

3.5

An excellent historical fiction book written about the horrific dictatorship following Haile Selasse’s reign in Ethiopia. The book triggers your curiosity in regards to Ethiopia’s history. It is interesting to see the Emperor portrayed differently from what we hear from the Jamaican people who really worship him. It is a fantastic commentary on the ways in which a regime or an idea can become more powerful than- and sometimes counter- the intentions of the people involved in it, and the ways in which both oppressors and oppressed can be similarly fighting for survival.

lazygal's review against another edition

3.0

A very difficult book to read, thanks to the images of torture the author has included. The story of a nation's implosion under the twin forces of famine and military revolt, this novel reminded me how little we in the West talk about, or study, African countries.

I'm not sure why it was necessary to create a new character as a stand-in for Mengistu Haile Mariam, or to imagine the mental confusion of Emporer Hailie Salassi. The other characters (Hailu and his family, the soldiers, their neighbors) all seemed to be specific types, chosen to illustrate the varieties of behavior and beliefs during this sort of upheaval. The torture scenes, the divisions in the families and friendships, the horror that was the start of the Derg era - all are sadly reminiscent of other horrors in other countries. How we continue to go through these episodes is beyond me - we never seem to learn.

Copy provided by publisher.