Reviews

One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

missysreadingcorner's review against another edition

3.0

Even reading this book was completely out of my comfort zone, I liked it. It was good to learn about people from different cultural backgrounds in a stressful moment. While I did like the book, I can't see myself reading this again or recommending to anyone. I've read other books with a similar set up: a group of people in a disaster zone confessing to each other. The story wasn't gripping. I didn't feel empathy for anyone.

bleuy007's review

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

wisbeth's review against another edition

3.0

One Amazing Thing is about a group of 9 people who are trapped in an Indian passport and visa office somewhere in the U.S. To pass the time and comfort themselves they take turn telling one amazing thing that happened in their lives. We also learn a bit about each character and why they were in the office seeking a passport/visa to India. Some characters were more likeable than others. I like the author's writing style. It almost felt like a book of short stories intertwined with the main story which was being trapped in the earthquake. Very different from the books I have read lately. I have read the last page and a half over several times and I'm not sure how I felt about the ending. I felt left hanging. Reading this book right after the earthquake in Haiti felt very surreal to me.

kxmulligan79's review against another edition

4.0

I would actually give it a 3.5.

se_wigget's review against another edition

5.0

 Uma, a graduate student, is waiting impatiently at an Indian visa office with strangers of several ethnicities and backgrounds, all intending to visit or move to India. Suddenly an earthquake strikes, and they are stranded in the office with no electricity and with a hole in the ceiling. Tension rises in the crisis, and Uma stops a fight when she proposes that each of them tell a significant story about their lives. As they each tell a personal tale, they find interconnectedness through this storytelling, for each one of them has experienced suffering, love, wishes, and loss. This is an intensely psychological and compelling novel.

jcpdiesel21's review against another edition

2.0

Mixed feelings about this one. The premise is definitely intriguing and Divakaruni is undoubtedly a talented writer. However, I like the idea of the book more than its actual execution, and it came across as a series of short stories that were very loosely connected. The personal stories that the characters share start out interesting, but after a while I noticed that ideas and themes started to repeat themselves, and these stories became less engaging as the present-day situation dealing with the aftermath of the earthquake became more dire. I wish that there had been more material in the present to help flesh out the characters; a few unfortunately never progressed past two-dimensional stereotypes. I felt cheated and irritated by the ending as well; I actually thought that pages of my copy were missing when the book finished so abruptly!

crlk's review against another edition

5.0

This was "one amazing" novel. I could not put it down and read it in one afternoon by the pool. I loved the choice of characters placed in the embassy - and I absolutely loved the uniqueness of each of their connections to India. I did not know there was a movement of Chinese to India back in history, so I learned something new. I read the ARC version so I do not know how it may have changed, if at all, in the final version. But one thing is that I feel I did not get "enough" of Lily's or Tariq's stories. I also didn't get enough of Cameron's story. For a first, this was really an "amazing" piece. I highly recommend it.

rosetyper9's review against another edition

3.0

The first thought that popped into my head as I read the synopsis was 'The Decameron'. For those of you who haven't read it, 'The Decameron' is about a group of people in ancient Italy? who flee to the mountains in order to escape the black plague, they then tell each other stories. That just seemed like it was so similar to this book, not a bad thing at all, it take guts to write a book stringing stories well together.

I liked this book for it's premise mostly. 'One Amazing Thing' started out a bit slow and then progressed a bit only to take a cliff dive off the deep end. Once the characters started to tell their stories, the whole book seemed to lose a bit of focus, and in turn as a reader, so did I. The characters were well thought of and the author did an excellent job putting these characters together in one place, and also with the choosing of the character's backgrounds. I just never felt that hook that draws you head first into a story. 'One Amazing Thing' was just ok, in my opinion. I still love the idea of the book though and it has an excellent theme; I'll let you figure it out for yourself.

tami317's review against another edition

4.0

Nine strangers are trapped in a visa office after an earthquake rocks the city. All come from different backgrounds, ethnicities, and cultures. To pass the time, one of them suggests that they tell a story of a time that was important to them, "one amazing thing". The stories were wonderful and explained how different their lives are. I thought this book was beautifully written. I would have given it five stars, but I felt it got a bit confusing with so many characters. I would recommend this book to others.

javamamanc's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25