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breadsips's review
2.0
This book attempts to capture the emotions and disorientations of the hijacked Egyptian revolution in all its chaotic polyvocality and unfortunately (for such an important history) comes up short. The author assumes you are familiar with all the political twists and turns, and throws you right into battle after overlapping battle, teleporting you between milestones with little context and scene-setting. Reading this over three days exhausted me completely- and perhaps that was the ultimate intent.
xoopa's review
4.0
I can't emphasize enough how beautifully this book is written. And can't believe it's fiction because it's too close to reality. An account of People's lives when the romance of the revolution is over, when the utopian idea is replaced by the dystopian reality. This is what I will call "Creative Fiction"
hayasbooks's review
5.0
ouch.
this book seared into my very being.
what the fuck.
i began this book last month, and was immediately hooked, and attached to the characters. i purposefully slowed my reading pace and took my time annotating and analysing just to soak up every last bit of this book. it is haunting. my god i love it.
hamilton really knows how to capture his readers' attention from the very start. his writing style is so chaotic and fast-paced yet poetic and, quite frankly, painful. the way the writer describes loss, death, and deprivation is so casual it will rip you apart.
"down with the military rule"
this phrase has been repeated throughout the book, and it never fails to poke at the revolutionist in me. this book gives so much insight about the january 25 revolution in egypt from an insider point of view. i was sucked in to the world of mariam and khalil. the world where every other person is a martyr, or the relative of a martyr. the book tells a few devastating stories about those relatives and further gives all the more reason to fight the corruption.
there are several familiar descriptions in this book. ones that speak of graffiti on old walls and listening to fairuz in the morning whilst drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. i'm not from egypt, but these descriptions are similar to where i'm from, and they really hit close to home. i've realized that it's not really home if i don't see "thawra" graffiti or just random swear-word graffiti on the walls, and that's the beauty of it. it's home, and it's comforting. hamilton also uses the exact translations of some arabic words, and sometimes, he never even bothers to translate them. and i know the arabs reading are all thinking of it like some sort of inside joke. i love it.
pity, grief, anger.
no, not anger. raw unbridled rage. those are merely a few of the emotions i felt while reading. it had me in tears quite a few times. and gave me goosebumps in others. i have never felt this much intense emotion whilst reading a book before. unbelievable.
i refuse to talk about the ending. heart-fucking-breaking. i refused to believe that the book had ended. it had me maniacally flipping for more pages when i knew there were none left.
"brings Egypt to her knees"
this is also a repeated phrase. the mere personification of the falling country, i can feel it in my heart. i loathe the way this makes me feel. i hate it i hate it i hate that it shakes me to my very core.
this book shakes me to my very core. i hate this book as much as i love it and i give in to every nauseatingly poetic word hamilton says. to the inherent beauty of recklessness and revolution. but despite the determination and pathetically hopeful attempts, the city always wins.
this book seared into my very being.
what the fuck.
i began this book last month, and was immediately hooked, and attached to the characters. i purposefully slowed my reading pace and took my time annotating and analysing just to soak up every last bit of this book. it is haunting. my god i love it.
hamilton really knows how to capture his readers' attention from the very start. his writing style is so chaotic and fast-paced yet poetic and, quite frankly, painful. the way the writer describes loss, death, and deprivation is so casual it will rip you apart.
"down with the military rule"
this phrase has been repeated throughout the book, and it never fails to poke at the revolutionist in me. this book gives so much insight about the january 25 revolution in egypt from an insider point of view. i was sucked in to the world of mariam and khalil. the world where every other person is a martyr, or the relative of a martyr. the book tells a few devastating stories about those relatives and further gives all the more reason to fight the corruption.
there are several familiar descriptions in this book. ones that speak of graffiti on old walls and listening to fairuz in the morning whilst drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. i'm not from egypt, but these descriptions are similar to where i'm from, and they really hit close to home. i've realized that it's not really home if i don't see "thawra" graffiti or just random swear-word graffiti on the walls, and that's the beauty of it. it's home, and it's comforting. hamilton also uses the exact translations of some arabic words, and sometimes, he never even bothers to translate them. and i know the arabs reading are all thinking of it like some sort of inside joke. i love it.
pity, grief, anger.
no, not anger. raw unbridled rage. those are merely a few of the emotions i felt while reading. it had me in tears quite a few times. and gave me goosebumps in others. i have never felt this much intense emotion whilst reading a book before. unbelievable.
i refuse to talk about the ending. heart-fucking-breaking. i refused to believe that the book had ended. it had me maniacally flipping for more pages when i knew there were none left.
"brings Egypt to her knees"
this is also a repeated phrase. the mere personification of the falling country, i can feel it in my heart. i loathe the way this makes me feel. i hate it i hate it i hate that it shakes me to my very core.
this book shakes me to my very core. i hate this book as much as i love it and i give in to every nauseatingly poetic word hamilton says. to the inherent beauty of recklessness and revolution. but despite the determination and pathetically hopeful attempts, the city always wins.
mathildekr's review
4.0
Protesting against corruption, blatant injustice, torture, and dreaming of a better Egypt, the characters of this novel are extraordinarily strong and courageous... death and suffering are everywhere, yet rarely has a novel made me feel more alive.
sebby_reads's review against another edition
4.0
The City Always Wins is a novel by Omar Robert Hamilton about the front line of 2011 Uprising in Cairo, Egypt. The story centres Mariam and Khalil who actively participate in the revolution and along with their group of friends, their attempts to remove the dictator and their fight against the brutality of the army and police force are told in a very compelling narrative.
Motivated by their purposes and burned by the injustice and inhumane treatment by the army, Khalil and Mariam along with their friends take various roles in the revolution. They protests in the streets, support the medic team and help the families of the fallen ones. With a team of photographers, videographers, writers and translators, they put up news and podcast on their platform and share the information across various social media sites. As the revolution progresses over the years and the striation doesn’t play out as they wish to, their hope and dreams change into fear and frustration. One by one, they lost their friends and the optimism Khalil holds onto becomes discouragement. Mariam continues her fight without wavering from her dedication for the voices of the lost heroes. When the revolution continues with very little success, the argument between friends for different ideologies form.
It is such a riveting read and hits close to home with whats happening in Myanmar. The writer let the reader walk in the shoes of those protestors as well as in their hearts. Various people play different roles in these revolutions and the painful part of their stories are told through sorrow, fear, guilt, and traumas they encounter. Parents losing their child mourning for them everyday constantly thing with several ‘should’ves’ in their head. Friends losing their friends during the protests thinking with ‘what ifs’ theories running in their heads. The traumatic death and torture of other people they witness during the strikes haunt them through many sleepless night. Helpers not being able to help or not being able to do enough for those in need. The survivor’s guilt. Each is portrayed with fitting use of euphemistic expressions.
When they start having doubts on their plans and questioning on their cause, different views are presented through the characters craftily and succinctly. The poetic proses that describe when one character is yearning for someone who has died or missing, they are too beautiful. The long sentences are used when the character is protesting or running for their life, or introspecting for the traumatic events they have encountered. As I read such prolong sentences, I was equally breathless as the character. Interlacing with the tweets and the news headlines of the actual event timeline, it is a very interesting read and exhausting, as well. It is also an important read, too, with the writer’s ingenious narrative.
Motivated by their purposes and burned by the injustice and inhumane treatment by the army, Khalil and Mariam along with their friends take various roles in the revolution. They protests in the streets, support the medic team and help the families of the fallen ones. With a team of photographers, videographers, writers and translators, they put up news and podcast on their platform and share the information across various social media sites. As the revolution progresses over the years and the striation doesn’t play out as they wish to, their hope and dreams change into fear and frustration. One by one, they lost their friends and the optimism Khalil holds onto becomes discouragement. Mariam continues her fight without wavering from her dedication for the voices of the lost heroes. When the revolution continues with very little success, the argument between friends for different ideologies form.
It is such a riveting read and hits close to home with whats happening in Myanmar. The writer let the reader walk in the shoes of those protestors as well as in their hearts. Various people play different roles in these revolutions and the painful part of their stories are told through sorrow, fear, guilt, and traumas they encounter. Parents losing their child mourning for them everyday constantly thing with several ‘should’ves’ in their head. Friends losing their friends during the protests thinking with ‘what ifs’ theories running in their heads. The traumatic death and torture of other people they witness during the strikes haunt them through many sleepless night. Helpers not being able to help or not being able to do enough for those in need. The survivor’s guilt. Each is portrayed with fitting use of euphemistic expressions.
When they start having doubts on their plans and questioning on their cause, different views are presented through the characters craftily and succinctly. The poetic proses that describe when one character is yearning for someone who has died or missing, they are too beautiful. The long sentences are used when the character is protesting or running for their life, or introspecting for the traumatic events they have encountered. As I read such prolong sentences, I was equally breathless as the character. Interlacing with the tweets and the news headlines of the actual event timeline, it is a very interesting read and exhausting, as well. It is also an important read, too, with the writer’s ingenious narrative.
missmesmerized's review
5.0
The promise of a better life. A fight against an unbeatable enemy. A love in a time of upheaval. Almost 20 years under the dictator Mubarak come to an end when masses of people inspired by revolutions in other Muslim countries gather in Tahrir Square in Cairo and force Mubarak to resign. Social media are the new weapons and Mariam and Khalil are in the centre of the protests. They broadcast what is happening to the world and they treat the wounded always in fear of becoming a victim of the police, the army or any other group. Over months they keep their revolution alive, actually living from it, forgetting to eat, forgetting their own life. They feel their power to change something, but is there really hope for Egypt?
Omar Robert Hamilton, known for his fight for the Palestinian cause, combines the real events which took place in Egypt over 1.5 years with the fictitious story about Mariam and Khalil. Both of them are interesting characters. Mariam, on the one hand, who helps the doctors and could, together with her parents, establish a kind of camp hospital where immediate treatment is possible, who consoles the mothers of those who died in the protests and who is stubbornly following her ideals. Khalid, on the other hand, is not even Egyptian but find in the protests a kind of proxy for his family’s omitted fight for the Palestinian cause. With his American passport, he has no need to risk his life, but he is fully immersed in the revolutionary power and the mass movement and helps with his journalistic and technical knowledge. Their love is strong in the beginning, but the common aim slowly makes them drift apart. This becomes obvious when they talk to Mariam’s father about their plans for the future - marriage and children? No common ground can be found anymore, so what hold them together?
The strongest aspect of the novel, however, is the description of the fight. The risks the protesters take are impressively narrated. Their belief in a better country is strong and passionate. Some pieces were scary for somebody who was never close to such a situation: the young people writing the phone numbers of their nearest of kin on their arms so that the beloved can be informed in case of serious injury or death. I can only imagine people not really being ready to die, but accepting a possible death as a necessary danger to take for the cause.
Additionally, the narrative structure is remarkable. Omar Robert Hamilton has structured the novel in thee chapter: Tomorrow, Today, Yesterday. This diametrically opposes the chronological order and makes you wonder. Furthermore, the narrative is accelerated by frequent insertions of newspaper headlines, tweets and the like. The author thus managed to create an atmosphere of tension and excitement, you are really drawn into the plot and the characters’ emotional state of thrill.
Even though the plot is highly political, it is not judgemental at all. We get the uprising from a very personal point of view which I found most interesting and fascinating and important for outsiders. All revolutions are backed by ordinary people who risk everything. This novel most certainly gives them a voice and, most importantly, hints at a critical situation of a country which we tend to forget due to even more serious problems.
Omar Robert Hamilton, known for his fight for the Palestinian cause, combines the real events which took place in Egypt over 1.5 years with the fictitious story about Mariam and Khalil. Both of them are interesting characters. Mariam, on the one hand, who helps the doctors and could, together with her parents, establish a kind of camp hospital where immediate treatment is possible, who consoles the mothers of those who died in the protests and who is stubbornly following her ideals. Khalid, on the other hand, is not even Egyptian but find in the protests a kind of proxy for his family’s omitted fight for the Palestinian cause. With his American passport, he has no need to risk his life, but he is fully immersed in the revolutionary power and the mass movement and helps with his journalistic and technical knowledge. Their love is strong in the beginning, but the common aim slowly makes them drift apart. This becomes obvious when they talk to Mariam’s father about their plans for the future - marriage and children? No common ground can be found anymore, so what hold them together?
The strongest aspect of the novel, however, is the description of the fight. The risks the protesters take are impressively narrated. Their belief in a better country is strong and passionate. Some pieces were scary for somebody who was never close to such a situation: the young people writing the phone numbers of their nearest of kin on their arms so that the beloved can be informed in case of serious injury or death. I can only imagine people not really being ready to die, but accepting a possible death as a necessary danger to take for the cause.
Additionally, the narrative structure is remarkable. Omar Robert Hamilton has structured the novel in thee chapter: Tomorrow, Today, Yesterday. This diametrically opposes the chronological order and makes you wonder. Furthermore, the narrative is accelerated by frequent insertions of newspaper headlines, tweets and the like. The author thus managed to create an atmosphere of tension and excitement, you are really drawn into the plot and the characters’ emotional state of thrill.
Even though the plot is highly political, it is not judgemental at all. We get the uprising from a very personal point of view which I found most interesting and fascinating and important for outsiders. All revolutions are backed by ordinary people who risk everything. This novel most certainly gives them a voice and, most importantly, hints at a critical situation of a country which we tend to forget due to even more serious problems.
azaadsadiq's review
4.0
The City Always Wins is an admirable novel, if sometimes hard to get through (though the months it took me to finish this reflects more poorly on my own reading habits than the novel's quality).
Of all the revolutions to use for a fictional narrative, the 2011 Egyptian Revolution is especially challenging. The ultimate fate of the Revolution makes it hard to create a compelling narrative in the vein of traditional revolutionary fiction, so Hamilton instead embraces the inherent pessimism that would manifest from a revolution that ultimately ended up where it started. Consequently, the violence and despair that permeate the novel are conveyed through nondescript prose that conveys a sense of banality to the protests and their aftermath, as if to suggest what happened was expected to the point of being inevitable. Given Hamilton's filmmaking experience, this might be expected.
Nevertheless, the beige prose is rich with feeling. The hope, despondency and anger that characterised the democracy movement shines through as vividly as Hamilton's characterisation of Cairo and Egypt. Another impressive feat of his is his ability to highlight the impact of the revolution on ordinary people, demonstrating the human cost of political turmoil.
However, the novel's not perfect. The supporting characters aren't the most fleshed out, and that simplicity extends to the portrayal of the Muslim Brotherhood. Whilst I, like Hamilton, oppose it, it would've been worthwhile to get an examination of why it enjoyed genuine support within the novel and real life. Speaking of which, the change to the structure that occurs with Morsi's rise to power makes for an abrupt change in the reading experience.
Ultimately, there is a lot to recommend about The City Always Wins, and its a great read for those interested in political and MENA centred fiction.
Of all the revolutions to use for a fictional narrative, the 2011 Egyptian Revolution is especially challenging. The ultimate fate of the Revolution makes it hard to create a compelling narrative in the vein of traditional revolutionary fiction, so Hamilton instead embraces the inherent pessimism that would manifest from a revolution that ultimately ended up where it started. Consequently, the violence and despair that permeate the novel are conveyed through nondescript prose that conveys a sense of banality to the protests and their aftermath, as if to suggest what happened was expected to the point of being inevitable. Given Hamilton's filmmaking experience, this might be expected.
Nevertheless, the beige prose is rich with feeling. The hope, despondency and anger that characterised the democracy movement shines through as vividly as Hamilton's characterisation of Cairo and Egypt. Another impressive feat of his is his ability to highlight the impact of the revolution on ordinary people, demonstrating the human cost of political turmoil.
However, the novel's not perfect. The supporting characters aren't the most fleshed out, and that simplicity extends to the portrayal of the Muslim Brotherhood. Whilst I, like Hamilton, oppose it, it would've been worthwhile to get an examination of why it enjoyed genuine support within the novel and real life. Speaking of which, the change to the structure that occurs with Morsi's rise to power makes for an abrupt change in the reading experience.
Ultimately, there is a lot to recommend about The City Always Wins, and its a great read for those interested in political and MENA centred fiction.
crunden's review
5.0
We are surrounded by the conversations we didn't have.
This is one of those books that's necessary. It's harrowing and haunting and painful and beautifully well-written. Hands down recommend it to everyone.
This is one of those books that's necessary. It's harrowing and haunting and painful and beautifully well-written. Hands down recommend it to everyone.
danaali's review
5.0
a beautiful and heartbreaking fictionalized account of the aftermath of jan '11. i loved the writing. a slightly surreal experience reading this in the current political vacuum we're in. nonetheless, an important read.
adriennne's review against another edition
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Death, Child death, Rape, Torture, Police brutality, Misogyny, Medical content, and Blood