Reviews

The Secret Sky by Atia Abawi

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itratali's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

sunbear98's review against another edition

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5.0

Really great read! It seems as if it is based on the author's life story, but it might be fairly loosely based in fact. Whatever, it is a great story that kept me on the edge of my seat nearly every minute of it.

cuiyenn's review against another edition

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4.0

A boy and a girl meet after a few years of growing up separated and fell in love, who did not surrender to their circumstances which forbid them not to meet each other, all the more get married and be united. This book is about the journey they both choose, which involved a lot of violence happening around them, hard truths of what's really happening between two tribes in Afghanistan.

Never realize that I know a lot of Arabic used in this book, bcs Bahasa Indonesia has a lot of Arabic derivations. I enjoyed the book from the start, couldn't really stop reading because it has great climaxes, which is not overwhelming nor boring. Great, strong characters.

fuzaila's review against another edition

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3.0

"THIS IS LOVE: TO FLY TOWARD A SECRET SKY,
TO CAUSE A HUNDRED VEILS TO FALL EACH MOMENT.
FIRST TO LET GO OF LIFE.
FINALLY, TO TAKE A STEP WITHOUT FEET."
-Jalal ad-Din Rumi

Because this book is set in Afghanistan, from where comes great writers like Khaled Hosseini, I picked this book with enthusiasm. Not much of my expectations were met though.

OVERVIEW
Samiullah and Fathima are childhood friends. He is a Pashtun boy and she is a Hazara girl. They should have known better than to grow fond of each other. But still, they can't resist falling in love. In the land of Taliban, love like their's is not greeted without contempt. Samiullah's cousin Rashid is bent down on punishing them for their offensive act of falling in love. It is not only them but also their families who must face the consequences. Will their love survive? Would Rashid be condecending enough to spare their love, and life?

My thoughts

¤ ~ The premise was promising - A tale of forbidden love in Afghanistan. But the story felt short of love. Samiullah and Fatima's love story felt just like a 'story' to me, almost forced. Not that I expected any romance. But still, I didn't understand their love and couldn't sympathize for them.

¤ ~ The characters lack a certain depth. I couldn't feel for any of them. I didn't feel any grief or pain on the deaths.

¤ ~ The writing felt... flat. I was emotionless throughout the book. Even if the story was touchy, it earned no sympathy from me. Absolutely none.

¤ ~ I liked the way Atia Abawi blended common observations into her story. It added to the appeal.
Like this -

"I don't stare. Instead I quickly grab some raw dough and stick it to my mouth before running off, barely in time to save myself from a swat from my aunt's rolling pin."

Or even this,

"Behind him is the four-year-old concentrating on a plate full of nuts and candy, obviously afraid of dropping it. Mullah Sarwar kisses him after he succesfully sets the plate down infront of us"

¤ ~ The narrative was very clever. The way it alternates between Samiullah, Rashid and Fathima's perspective, let's us know what was happening behind the scenes.

¤ ~ There was nothing new to the story. I could predict every part of it, even the deaths.

Spoiler

Fathima's sister Afo is killed in absence of her as a punishment to her family

. It was a huge turn-off for me. I'm not usually a I-know-what-is-gonna-happen soert of reader. But this book was plain and lacked intensity, I had it all figured out.

VERDICT
I liked the book but did not like the book. I liked it because it successfully portrays the ethnic cultural differences and the hardships of women's life in Afghanistan. Other than that there wasn't much that appealed to me in this book.

aprilbooksandwine's review against another edition

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5.0

If you want a read that pulls no punches but really lets you have it, this is the book. Read the rest of my review here

realpageturner's review against another edition

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3.0

Summary: Fatima is a Hazara girl, raised to be obedient and dutiful. Samiullah is a Pashtun boy raised to defend the traditions of his tribe. They were not meant to fall in love. But they do. And the story that follows shows both the beauty and the violence in current-day Afghanistan as Fatima and Samiullah fight their families, their cultures and the Taliban to stay together. Based on the people Atia Abawi met and the events she covered during her nearly five years in Afghanistan, this stunning novel is a must-read for anyone who has lived during America's War in Afghanistan.

Review: I became interested in this novel because of the author's backstory--the author's parents fled Afghanistan for their children's sake. Atia Abawi grew up in the US but also went to an Afghan school to learn the language and culture. She ended up living there for five years as she covered the breaking news stories on the ongoing war. During that time she fell in love as she meet her future husband. "Afghanistan is a land of contradictions"...full of beauty and ugliness Abawi writes. Which I think is a intriguing way to describe a place that many U.S. citizens do not understand.

The "Secret Sky" is very much a modern Romano and Juliet so in that sense it is a very easy and predictable read. However, what makes the novel more interesting than a simple Romano and Juliet retelling is that it, in some ways, trying to humanize the terrorist. Some of them, for example, have unwittingly become who they are.
This novel is great for anyone looking for a fast read that is also a touching love story. Teens curious about the middle east will also vastly enjoy this book.