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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
I am always impressed by the depth and complexity of the relationships between Shamsie's characters, who in this case make up three generations of two very different families. She also manages to string together an intricate plot that spans decades. This is the third novel of Shamsie's that I have read, and I can see why it is considered one of her most, if not the most, ambitious of her works. I don't think I've read a book like this before that is able to tie a strong, cohesive plot between seemingly distinct, yet equally significant, historical events: WWII, the Partition of India, the rise of terrorism, 9/11. It is very much an epic, though I suspect what readers deem heroic in this book is highly debatable. I also appreciate that Shamsie treats her subjects with care and nuance, and is willing to challenge Western narratives about war. I found the novel's anger at the devastation Western powers caused both resonant and affirming. As a child of Asian immigrants in the US, I wrestle with a version of that same anger alongside a desire to find my own place in the country. More often than not, I land on the side of anger.
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Islamophobia, War
Spanning 5 countries and 6 decades, Burnt Shadows begins where the world as we knew ended, in Nagasaki, on August 9 1945. The day began as a perfectly blue day but only the survivors, among them Hiroko, would associate it with a certain greyness. The greyness clouding the world, when war has removed all the vibrant colors.
War remains at the core of Burnt Shadows, not the horrors of war as you see it happening before you, but picking up from broken shards of a former life, in the aftermath of war itself. Every country that it encompasses, begins at a point when it has been razed down by hatred. Hiroko Tanaka loses her lover, Konrad, a German translator, on that fateful August day and her life changes forever. Two years later...
Read more of the review @ http://suchisbookshelf.blogspot.com/2010/03/burnt-shadows-kamila-shamsie.html
War remains at the core of Burnt Shadows, not the horrors of war as you see it happening before you, but picking up from broken shards of a former life, in the aftermath of war itself. Every country that it encompasses, begins at a point when it has been razed down by hatred. Hiroko Tanaka loses her lover, Konrad, a German translator, on that fateful August day and her life changes forever. Two years later...
Read more of the review @ http://suchisbookshelf.blogspot.com/2010/03/burnt-shadows-kamila-shamsie.html
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-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
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
First two parts (that takes place in Japan and India) were really interesting and well written but after that ut felt like the plot was all over the place, the author was trying to fit so many topics into the story and also it was all a bit too dramatic and i rolled my eyes several times lol
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I think Burnt Shadows really shines in depicting the emotional turmoil and grief that persists onto families from war. the ending is certainly an ending, but not exactly one that we want as readers. It is not cathartic. It makes us crave for a resolution that millions have not seen a glimpse of. :(
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, Deportation
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes