Reviews

The Ardent Swarm by Yamen Manai

kjanie's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.75

kristine2221's review against another edition

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

2.0

tortello_alla_zucca's review

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

4.5

ladywren890's review against another edition

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adventurous informative tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

ashleykta's review

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

3.75

victoriathuyvi's review

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4.0

4.5. This was such a riveting read unlike any other.

quiltmom14's review

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5.0

I got this book b/c Amazon was giving away international books one day - otherwise I would never have found or read it. Which would have been a true shame. This allegorical story is brilliant and gorgeously written - literally took my breath away. A must read.

retiredlibrarylady's review

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3.0

A really nice story; possibly the translation makes the writing a bit clunky at times. Sidi lives alone in the hills of Morocco tending his "girls", his bees. They are his life but two things start to disrupt that...the takeover of the government by fundamentalist Islamists and the arrival of giant hornets that destroy one of his hives and all the bees inside. The search for the hornets and a way to stop them occupies most of the novel as he enlists the help of others. One couple travels to Japan to bring home queens that can propagate warriors that can fight the hornets; the description of their trip is lovely but the destruction of all the queens but one is horrific. An exciting finish gives hope for the bees, if not for a return to a more reasonable government.

georgiarybanks's review against another edition

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informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

donasbooks's review

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4.0

This is my first completed book of my August Picks and it was a fun one! Yamen Manai takes us on a journey to the North African village of Nawa, where Sidi lives a withdrawn but settled life with his wife (who saves the day, if you ask me, but I won't spoil that for you!) raising bees. (We won't talk about how annoying I find it that he refers to these insects throughout the entire book as his "girls." Not "sweethearts," or "babies," or even "lovers," but "girls.")

The plot was a little muddled, I thought, as Manai's metaphor might have actually been a matter of conflation. The invasion of a deadly wasp on his bees' hives, which threatened Sidi's own livelihood and apparently the future of the whole region poses a serious problem-- maybe just as serious as the simultaneous storyline in which the region's neighborhoods and educational institutions become infiltrated by religious extremists? Until the very last minute, when Manai lines everything up, I wasn't sure how everything was supposed to connect. I didn't even think it related except by convenience of location.

Maybe the extended metaphor at work here needs another leg...or two...but the last couple scenes are fantastic and tie the book together beautifully. I did enjoy this book both for a great ending, and for the great research.

Do you remember how everyone squealed about how much they learned about beekeeping from THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES? Well. This book kind of shows that one way up!

Rating 3.5 stars
Finished August 2022
Recommended for fans of contemporary fiction; readers seeking diverse voices and stories

August Pick 2/10
52 Book Club Summer Genre Challenge: Other
52 Book Club 52 Book Challenge: set on at least 2 continents

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