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sci_mom's review against another edition
4.0
I received this book through a Goodreads Giveaway. I have a basic understanding of the Kurdish struggles, but this story brought it to life and was simply heart-wrenching. In most stories, MC development is solid, but other characters often times are not; that was not true here. I felt like there were at least a half dozen characters who I knew well enough to care about and a few more who I understood well enough to appreciate their motivations. It was a beautiful, painful story full of events that led to Olivia finding a greater awareness of her world and her place in it.
tamara_mousa's review
5.0
Take What You Can Carry is kind of a sequel to the previous post - The Gardener of Baghdad by Ahmad Ardalan. Gian Sardar's novel is based on true historical events, which profoundly describes the chilling life of Kurds in Iraq in 1979 - a few months before Saddam's reign. This absorbing book is about Olivia, a secretary in a newspaper desiring to be a photographer, who plunged into the unknown for the sake of understanding her Kurdish boyfriend, Delan. Regardless of living in fear and being attacked, tortured, and killed by the ones who should protect them, the Kurds faced daily abuse with courage and by showing kindness to each other. They rise from the ashes and move with since no one can forget nor stop living because of misfortunes! This story also stressed on appreciating what we have, and valuing the people in our life in spite of who they are!
There is a summary about it in my blog - https://www.tamarayousefmousa.com/
There is a summary about it in my blog - https://www.tamarayousefmousa.com/
curby's review
emotional
slow-paced
3.5
Ugh this was slow and boring at times for me. However the plot was good and the writing good as well. I just couldn’t get into it.
kirsten_s's review against another edition
5.0
It has been a long time since a book made me feel so much. So much love, and so much pain.
justasking27's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
3.75
antidietleah's review
4.0
I thought this was a beautiful but heartbreaking story. At times I loved the way it was written, at other times I felt myself agitated that the author didn't just come out and say what she meant. Perhaps trying a bit to hard at times to be creative and poetic.
The story itself is one that I have no knowledge of. The acknowledgements that explained it came from her parents made it even more real and beautiful.
The story itself is one that I have no knowledge of. The acknowledgements that explained it came from her parents made it even more real and beautiful.
mssegallsays's review
3.0
While it is a little slow to start I really enjoyed this novel. I have never read a book about Kurdistan and I found the warmth of the people remarkable. The imagery was stunning and Sardar did a great job bringing the environment to life.