Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Exit West by Mohsin Hamid

19 reviews

mirandyli's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

A nicely written take on what might happen if portals to other countries started to appear in random areas, and refugees start to use them to seek asylum. Unrealistic at times, like when the British decide not to bomb where the refugees live because they didn’t want to live with the fact they would do that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Excrement, Sexism, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, War, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Grief, and Islamophobia

lawbooks600's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Representation: Black and Asian characters
Score: Five out of ten.

Exit West by Mohsin Hamid is like a novel wrapped in incoherent and incorrect English where the first half is incredible but the second is a letdown. I remember reading a blurb saying Exit West meets An American Marriage, so after an entire year and a few months, I read Exit West, ignoring the low ratings, but it was underwhelming.

It starts with Saeed and Nadia living in an unnamed city in an unnamed country in a civil war that grows closer the more pages I read. Saeed and Nadia (who are already in a romantic relationship) have to flee, beginning the second half of the narrative, but Exit West is no ordinary refugee story. Do they cross countries or get on a boat? No, rather they discover a magical black door that can take them to any country in the world, so they enter it and land in Greece.

However, they discover another door so they can travel to America, London in the UK, and finally, Marrakech in Morocco. Sounds tedious? It is. If the only problem in Exit West are those doors, then I would be done with this review, but I'm not done. These doors represent an effortless way out, which misrepresents refugee experiences. In reality, some survive but have to face challenges. Some die, and no refugee has the privilege of teleporting out of their country. The characters are difficult to relate with, but adding depth could improve the reading experience. 

The most frustrating aspect are the run-on sentences. Hamid, have you heard of splitting sentences? That could help. One sentence lasted for one page and a few lines, so imagine reading that. This creation attempts a heartwarming conclusion with Saeed and Nadia in Marrakech together, but I didn't think they had chemistry. Exit West is another disappointing piece of literary fiction, so my search for an enjoyable one continues.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Xenophobia, War, Grief, Drug use, and Racism

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

Full trigger warnings: Military violence and war themes, physical assault and injury, fire, death of people in an explosion, refugee experiences, displacement, drug use, racism, white supremacy, xenophobia, blood, grief and loss depiction

violerwolf's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Hamid’s circular, winding prose is definitely not for everyone, and I think it probably turns a lot of people away from this book. This style works really well though at creating a sense of calm inevitability throughout the book, that everything that happens will happen because of who the characters are and what the world is. Hamid’s focus on intersectionality within the novel plays well with the larger themes of immigration and community. Similarly, the lack of specificity of where Nadia and Saeed are from creates the sense that they could be anyone and everyone. I did find the characterization awkward at points, and I went into the book originally assuming the doors to be a much larger part of the plot rather than a simple allegory for open/uncontrolled borders, but overall I’m excited to check out Hamid’s other work.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Police brutality, Grief, Sexism, Drug use, Death of parent, Abandonment, Classism, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Death, War, Confinement, and Racism

rhi_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, War, Xenophobia, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gun violence, Self harm, Grief, Suicide, and Genocide

Minor: Sexual harassment and Drug use

caitonline's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Death of parent, and War

Moderate: Violence, Grief, Drug use, Sexual harassment, and Suicide

readwriteknit's review against another edition

emotional reflective fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Islamophobia, War, Racism, Murder, and Xenophobia

time4tori2read's review against another edition

emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, War, Sexual content, and Grief

sarahdoggen's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

Such an interesting book, I loved to see all the different perspectives on the topic of migration. Definitely strong characters, and a good, well constructed plot.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Classism, Grief, Racism, Violence, War, and Gun violence

greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, and War

lianne_rooney's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, War, Hate crime, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Police brutality

Minor: Grief and Death of parent