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saracat's review against another edition
4.0
I can't recall having read any other second person books before, but I am curious to give more a try after this. I think part of what made the second person work for this novel was the fact that many details around setting especially were rather vague. I am a person who enjoys stories that are simply about a person(s) life, which, at face value, is what this book is about. Though, I think it also is making commentary about social systems and other things in the course of the novel in the way it shows how the protagonists life progresses and changes over the course of their life.
I definitely want to read more by this author in the future.
Content Warning: some short, somewhat graphic descriptions of bodily functions including one sex scene
I definitely want to read more by this author in the future.
Content Warning: some short, somewhat graphic descriptions of bodily functions including one sex scene
kategci's review against another edition
4.0
I picked up a used copy of this book while in Key West at the end of August. Written in the second person, in the form of a self-help book ( at least in the first paragraph or page of every section) that quickly segued into a novel, it follows our unnamed narrator through his life. Deftly written, it is light and humorous on the surface, but becomes a serious commentary on life in Asia, about a man trying to rise out of his humble origins. Parts of this story were familiar and parts were a surprise. Mohsin Hamid has a sharp eye and a sharper pen. For a slight book about a foreign country and society, it is worth spending an afternoon reading.
ainepalmtree's review against another edition
while i could never shake off the sense that the second person address didn't amount to much more than a gimmick, I am a sucker for novels that stretch from childhood to old age, and even more of a sucker for a poignantly happy ending. even if the self-help structuring was a little bit too clever for its own good, and the plot perhaps not especially complex or exciting, Hamid's intelligent and shrewd observations make this nevertheless enjoyable
glindaaa's review against another edition
2.0
I am not entirely sure what I think. Strangely said I like the writing style I just don't like the narration. I am not even sure if that is possible. The chapters were easy to read, I liked the first few paragraphs that explained why it was a self-help book but the narration that continued about the boy-man-grown up-whatever you want to call it, that was not really interesting. The narration was short and to the point which in a way is fine but I did not get why it was that way and it just felt slightly... I don't know impossible? How did the illegal water company become a big bucks company... I missed the steps (cuz heck yea make me rich).
So it was okay, to the change of maybe I liked it; I did not feel like dropping the book or anything, so that was something as well. I considered giving it 3 stars but Goodreads said you liked it and I am not sure again if I did. The book was okay as two stars say.
(Maybe it was the obsession with the pretty girl that made it meh for me... still not sure)
So it was okay, to the change of maybe I liked it; I did not feel like dropping the book or anything, so that was something as well. I considered giving it 3 stars but Goodreads said you liked it and I am not sure again if I did. The book was okay as two stars say.
(Maybe it was the obsession with the pretty girl that made it meh for me... still not sure)
dude_watchin_with_the_brontes's review against another edition
4.0
Read by the author, who is rapidly becoming a favorite.
The format of this book is unique, but it's not just a gimmick. The story itself is lovely, the prose is lovely, the characters interesting and believable, and all read beautifully by Hamid.
The format of this book is unique, but it's not just a gimmick. The story itself is lovely, the prose is lovely, the characters interesting and believable, and all read beautifully by Hamid.
sofiamarielg's review against another edition
4.0
Mohsin does a great job of telling a story within a loose self-help format. Somehow, his lack of details doesn't take away from letting you imagine his characters and the story, and like his other book I've read, [b:Exit West|30688435|Exit West|Mohsin Hamid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1477324680l/30688435._SY75_.jpg|51234185], it is engrossing and a pleasure to read.
mossbraker's review against another edition
3.0
enjoyed the first two thirds, last third lost me. very interesting structure with the second person narration.
peelspls's review against another edition
2.0
Pros: The author articulates well and the book is short.
(The rest of this is pretty much the cons)
The book is a story about a person who tried to achieve certain goals in their life and reached somewhat somewhere and then discovered life isn't linear/as planned, which doesn't strike me as an original premise, but I'll take it in a different context, narrative, etc. It ends up being exactly my summary, complete with a romantic subplot that wasn't necessary for the story to be fulfilling. I'd rather read a story about a ruthless tycoon from a difficult childhood, because at least I enjoy strategic plotting and scheming.
The author also uses the second person singular experiment to evoke sympathy when it really sounds like instructions, because that's not how I (the reader) would feel. The author explores this in some depth using the metaphor of a self-help book, and providing meta commentary about it, but sounds heavily prescriptive and incredibly cynical. This offhand cynical tone detracts from the emotional strength of the characters and affects even the description of poverty. Having witnessed and grown up around conditions similar to what the author describes, I would have expected a somewhat more humane rendering, but I suppose that's my city-privilege talking. What I'm saying is I can't relate to a story where people are "assigned" feelings.
Furthermore, even if the protagonist of the story is "you", the text is omniscient. I, the reader, am supposed to know what happened to everyone as opposed to discovering information like I would in real life. I also found it incredibly annoying how the "pretty girl" never ages into a graceful woman throughout the author's lifetime.
Lastly, the Big Plot Twist™ is cheap. A story need not necessarily have an ending at all to be meaningful, or can have an abrupt ending and achieve the same point of the story. But to drag chapters along because I, the reader, am supposed to assume that I have become an unreliable narrator is pushing the envelope on how much of the protagonist persona I'm supposed to embody.
(The rest of this is pretty much the cons)
The book is a story about a person who tried to achieve certain goals in their life and reached somewhat somewhere and then discovered life isn't linear/as planned, which doesn't strike me as an original premise, but I'll take it in a different context, narrative, etc. It ends up being exactly my summary, complete with a romantic subplot that wasn't necessary for the story to be fulfilling. I'd rather read a story about a ruthless tycoon from a difficult childhood, because at least I enjoy strategic plotting and scheming.
The author also uses the second person singular experiment to evoke sympathy when it really sounds like instructions, because that's not how I (the reader) would feel. The author explores this in some depth using the metaphor of a self-help book, and providing meta commentary about it, but sounds heavily prescriptive and incredibly cynical. This offhand cynical tone detracts from the emotional strength of the characters and affects even the description of poverty. Having witnessed and grown up around conditions similar to what the author describes, I would have expected a somewhat more humane rendering, but I suppose that's my city-privilege talking. What I'm saying is I can't relate to a story where people are "assigned" feelings.
Furthermore, even if the protagonist of the story is "you", the text is omniscient. I, the reader, am supposed to know what happened to everyone as opposed to discovering information like I would in real life. I also found it incredibly annoying how the "pretty girl" never ages into a graceful woman throughout the author's lifetime.
Lastly, the Big Plot Twist™ is cheap. A story need not necessarily have an ending at all to be meaningful, or can have an abrupt ending and achieve the same point of the story. But to drag chapters along because I, the reader, am supposed to assume that I have become an unreliable narrator is pushing the envelope on how much of the protagonist persona I'm supposed to embody.
tsharris's review against another edition
5.0
Beautifully written, surprisingly moving in ways that I didn't expect, and a lyrical presentation of the societies that billions of people are living in today.
marta0r's review against another edition
4.0
I've never before read a book written in second person, so that definitely intrigued me to begin with when I heard about it. I think it worked really well, and I liked getting to step into the shoes of someone with an identity and life so different from my own. I really enjoyed the writing, which made me feel like I was actually there as the story was happening, and loved getting to see the main character's whole life - I found his childhood and elderly times especially interesting!