curiouslykaylee's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the chapters about Edmond Charlot and his life. I preferred these chapters to the modern day chapters following Ryad. I also enjoyed learning more about Algeria's history. Good book overall.
mariwolf's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Amazing. I absolutely loved it
I only wish I had read it in French.
Not only did I enjoy this little book a lot, with all the descriptions of Algiers, I also learned various new things. Why had I never heard of Edmond Charlot???? And why did I know so little about the war between Algiers and France?
The way this was written worked really well for the book. Because it’s written from all these different perspectives from multiple timelines, you really get a good sense of what is going on and it does not get boring.
This book is really worth reading. Especially if you like descriptive (but not boring) writing of surroundings, books and bookstores, are interested in the history of France and Algiers, French authors. I’m considering buying Nos Richesses in French too.
I only wish I had read it in French.
Not only did I enjoy this little book a lot, with all the descriptions of Algiers, I also learned various new things. Why had I never heard of Edmond Charlot???? And why did I know so little about the war between Algiers and France?
The way this was written worked really well for the book. Because it’s written from all these different perspectives from multiple timelines, you really get a good sense of what is going on and it does not get boring.
This book is really worth reading. Especially if you like descriptive (but not boring) writing of surroundings, books and bookstores, are interested in the history of France and Algiers, French authors. I’m considering buying Nos Richesses in French too.
Spoiler
I do wish to know what happened to Abdallah. And did that guy keep the bookstore in the end? I didn’t fully understand the ending. <spoiler/>solitaevita's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
octavia_cade's review
informative
sad
medium-paced
3.0
I wanted to like this more than I did - the cover's so gorgeous, and I always like books about books. This one has a particularly interesting structure, bouncing between contemporary events and historical record in the form of journal entries, and I understand from the author's note at the back that a lot of this is based on actual fact (not entirely surprising, given all the references to various writers and their lives and publishing relationships scattered through the pages). Adimi spent a year sifting through archives for documented material, and it shows.
It shows a little too much, perhaps. I'm left feeling that this rather fragmented narrative, which is honestly quite sparse in places, works more for me as a teaser for an actual history book. I'd read that book! In fact, it makes me want to go and find a biography on Edmond Charlot. I'll add it to the list...
It shows a little too much, perhaps. I'm left feeling that this rather fragmented narrative, which is honestly quite sparse in places, works more for me as a teaser for an actual history book. I'd read that book! In fact, it makes me want to go and find a biography on Edmond Charlot. I'll add it to the list...
starryeyedgrls's review against another edition
2.0
Disappointed, but more so…confused? I have trouble understanding what the objective of this book was and what the author was trying to portray. Should this book be classified as a historical novel on the French occupation of Algeria, a biography of Edmond Charlot, the founder of ‘Les Vraies Richesses’, the famous bookstore that published the first works of well-known french authors like Albert Camus, or something completely different? I had a lot of difficulty trying to make that distinction. I feel like the author was trying to do multiple things at once and ultimately just ended up losing the plot altogether.
amy_harding's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
4.25
lou_mac's review
3.0
I'm not quite sure what this book was.... it felt partly historical fiction, but with an expectation I'd know a bit already about the history of Algeria and mid 1900s authors, and partly just a story, but I never quite got to know the characters well enough (particularly the modern ones) and I found the ending a little unsatisfying.
Being such a short book makes it difficult to get attached to the 3 separate bits of narration, and maybe a bit more first-person would have drawn me in more
Saying that, there are some truly beautiful moments of writing, and I did learn about a piece of history I didn't know before -even if it has left me with a lot of questions to go and find answers too.
.
Being such a short book makes it difficult to get attached to the 3 separate bits of narration, and maybe a bit more first-person would have drawn me in more
Saying that, there are some truly beautiful moments of writing, and I did learn about a piece of history I didn't know before -even if it has left me with a lot of questions to go and find answers too.
.