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breadandmushrooms's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-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
3.5
elotpowell's review against another edition
5.0
An absolutely fantastic read. Highly recommend. Amir Ahmadi Arian's way of uncovering plot points and history is absolutely incredible. Easily a contender for my favourite book I've read this year.
thepamz's review against another edition
3.0
Primero lo positivo: este libro está muy bien escrito, envolvente, estresante, muchas veces sientes la frustración del personaje principal. Y el contexto histórico es interesante. Sin embargo, no soy fan de las historias que solo están escritas para hacerte sentir mal. El interrogador es como un malo de cuento a veces, y yo se que es un libro de crítica social y política así que la realidad juega un papel importante pero... El final es como si el autor simplemente hubiera decidido dejar de escribir. Se acaba y ya. Todo lo malo se hace peor hasta ser imposible de corregir :/ no fui fan, pero al menos es fácil de leer y enganchante.
tearsinthesea's review against another edition
3.0
This story had a lot of potential, however I was overall very disappointed. The start of the novel was strong and engaged the reader but fell off somewhere in the middle. It was especially hard to follow with the shifting timeline. I also think it would have been easier to start the book chronologically (ex: Yunus’ life, the riot, arrest, prison-time). The ending did capture the challenges of Tehran and was represented well, but that is all it felt like. The characters were not memorable nor important. Definitely not worth the read
pearloz's review against another edition
4.0
Very good novel about a bus driver, advocating for drivers' rights, and his subsequent arrest and trial following a protest and an unfortunate incident where he assaulted the son of a minister (?). The majority of the novel is spent between interrogation scenes and flashbacks to the subjects of those scenes. I found it interesting how the tried to turn him--initially, it was by using the fact that he betrayed a friend against him, it was almost...mundane. However, that suggests how insidious the government could be. The eventual confession and trial were heartbreaking.
itzreibrary's review against another edition
4.0
“We are in the winter of history, Yunus,” he said. “The emergence of the last Imam is near. He will rise with an ax, and his first move will be to chop down the tree of history. It will be painful to watch. The earth will be cleansed of the filthy, the undeserving, and only those faithful to him will survive. Those who join the army of the Messiah will be permitted to survive the chaos and become the society of the future. My job is to save as many people as I can and make them worthy of being soldiers in his army. You have come a long way in signing these confessions, Yunus. But there is still a lot to do. I am sure if you stay on the right track, which we set you on in here, you will be redeemed at the end of the world.”
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
“The problem with you people is that you just don’t know us. You don’t even try. We don’t enjoy dealing with seventy million unhappy people, most of whom have no idea what’s going on. Iranians have changed, Yunus. They have changed so much within my lifetime. They want everything to be just normal without paying any price or working for it, like it’s their God-given right. They want the supermarkets to be full of cheap stuff and the absolute freedom to do and consume whatever they want. They have no clue who makes it safe for them to walk around the city with no fear of being blown to shreds by a bomb or shot down by a terrorist. Our people have become shortsighted and ungrateful. They live their lives day to day. But we didn’t start off yesterday. There is a history behind us, thousands of years of it?”
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
‘Not a single one of them asked me why the buses were not running. How many of them had ever thought of a bus driver’s life? None. Even after being stuck on the streets for two days, they refused to try. It was easier for them to think that we were lazy. Davoud was right. The city needed the shock.’
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
“‘The mullahs did nothing but suppress and petrify its emancipatory potential by reducing it to rituals and rules and superstitions. Our job here should be to revitalize the Sarbedaran Shiism against what is now being propagated by the establishment.’”
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
‘Five years ago, when a passenger fell and broke his finger, I spent a week in court and paid two months’ salary to get out of a lawsuit. Every driver sat behind the wheel in fear of an accident that could ruin him. And we were supposed to just shut up and drive. Of course we went on strike.’
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
After 25 years being a bus driver in Tehran, Yunus felt compelled to join in the bus strike with the union, only to find himself arrested a couple of days later. In the interrogation room, Yunus was forced to admit the crime he didn’t even know anything about. After being left in solitary for more than 20 days, Yunus finally relented then wrote his confession as dictated by his interrogator.
Set in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran, this book tells the story of Yunus, a bus driver who lives an ordinary life, alone with no family. While in confinement, Yunus reminisces about his past until before the bus strike; his childhood, his depressed father, how he decided to become a bus driver and met Behrouz, a fellow bus driver who invited him to book discussions and finally, union meetings that ended in strikes, and about Homa, his lover, who is also Behrouz's wife.
The narration and interrogation of Yunus, the accusations leveled against him seemed so convincing, I myself had doubts about Yunus' sanity because his character was vacillating. On the one hand he was passive and followed the flow, then he could suddenly explode. This also happened in his solitary confinement; at one moment Yunus resigned himself to his fate, at another moment he was filled with anger and desire to fight back.
For me, this contradiction in Yunus' character is precisely what is interesting because it piques curiosity about what his next fate will be. Another appeal is that through Yunus's memories I was able to at least learn about the political, economic and social situation of Iran at the time, and why a bus strike in the city could trigger a huge uproar that attracted international media attention.
Reading this with Desca, Amanda, and Rini. Thanks especially to Desca for introducing me to this engrossing and evocative reading!
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
“The problem with you people is that you just don’t know us. You don’t even try. We don’t enjoy dealing with seventy million unhappy people, most of whom have no idea what’s going on. Iranians have changed, Yunus. They have changed so much within my lifetime. They want everything to be just normal without paying any price or working for it, like it’s their God-given right. They want the supermarkets to be full of cheap stuff and the absolute freedom to do and consume whatever they want. They have no clue who makes it safe for them to walk around the city with no fear of being blown to shreds by a bomb or shot down by a terrorist. Our people have become shortsighted and ungrateful. They live their lives day to day. But we didn’t start off yesterday. There is a history behind us, thousands of years of it?”
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
‘Not a single one of them asked me why the buses were not running. How many of them had ever thought of a bus driver’s life? None. Even after being stuck on the streets for two days, they refused to try. It was easier for them to think that we were lazy. Davoud was right. The city needed the shock.’
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
“‘The mullahs did nothing but suppress and petrify its emancipatory potential by reducing it to rituals and rules and superstitions. Our job here should be to revitalize the Sarbedaran Shiism against what is now being propagated by the establishment.’”
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
‘Five years ago, when a passenger fell and broke his finger, I spent a week in court and paid two months’ salary to get out of a lawsuit. Every driver sat behind the wheel in fear of an accident that could ruin him. And we were supposed to just shut up and drive. Of course we went on strike.’
Excerpt From: "Then the Fish Swallowed Him: A Novel" by Amir Ahmadi Arian. Scribd.
After 25 years being a bus driver in Tehran, Yunus felt compelled to join in the bus strike with the union, only to find himself arrested a couple of days later. In the interrogation room, Yunus was forced to admit the crime he didn’t even know anything about. After being left in solitary for more than 20 days, Yunus finally relented then wrote his confession as dictated by his interrogator.
Set in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran, this book tells the story of Yunus, a bus driver who lives an ordinary life, alone with no family. While in confinement, Yunus reminisces about his past until before the bus strike; his childhood, his depressed father, how he decided to become a bus driver and met Behrouz, a fellow bus driver who invited him to book discussions and finally, union meetings that ended in strikes, and about Homa, his lover, who is also Behrouz's wife.
The narration and interrogation of Yunus, the accusations leveled against him seemed so convincing, I myself had doubts about Yunus' sanity because his character was vacillating. On the one hand he was passive and followed the flow, then he could suddenly explode. This also happened in his solitary confinement; at one moment Yunus resigned himself to his fate, at another moment he was filled with anger and desire to fight back.
For me, this contradiction in Yunus' character is precisely what is interesting because it piques curiosity about what his next fate will be. Another appeal is that through Yunus's memories I was able to at least learn about the political, economic and social situation of Iran at the time, and why a bus strike in the city could trigger a huge uproar that attracted international media attention.
Reading this with Desca, Amanda, and Rini. Thanks especially to Desca for introducing me to this engrossing and evocative reading!
everyturnastory's review against another edition
sad
tense
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
3.0
glaybor's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
4.75
nith's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0