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remigves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
2.5
thebobsphere's review against another edition
5.0
There is a fine line between tragedy and comedy and The Day Nina Simone Stopped Singing swerves between both realms. As the subtitle states the book is a monologue or a series of 10 monlogues to be more precise, where the author speaks about her father and his role in Beirut. In between each scene Nina Simone’s Sinnerman plays.
Each monologue focuses on a certain aspect on the author’s life. Her father’s background, the brutality of the civil war in Lebanon, the cruel tortures inflicted upon her father and how life was like during that period including boyfriends and family relationships. Given the backdrop of the play one can understand the significance of Sinnerman. In fact Darina Al Joundi talks about the importance of Nina Simone to her as well.
At times the narrative becomes so crazy that it is hard to believe that these are events which really happened. However there are humorous moments as well, mainly the descriptions of the author’s past lovers or the Bible study scene in the beginning. What comes out though is that The Day is not only a love letter to a missing parent but, and more importantly, also a statement about how women are treated in Lebanon: They cannot attend burials, one monologue is about rape, another is about marriage. As one can guess these sections also have a tragic aspect.
The Day Nina Simone Stopped Singing is barely 70 pages long but it is a powerful piece on war and feminism. It is eye opening and sure to leave an affect on the reader. The dark comic vibe, doesn’t alleviate matters but drives into the mind the sheer absurdity of war crossed with a fanatical notion of religion.
Each monologue focuses on a certain aspect on the author’s life. Her father’s background, the brutality of the civil war in Lebanon, the cruel tortures inflicted upon her father and how life was like during that period including boyfriends and family relationships. Given the backdrop of the play one can understand the significance of Sinnerman. In fact Darina Al Joundi talks about the importance of Nina Simone to her as well.
At times the narrative becomes so crazy that it is hard to believe that these are events which really happened. However there are humorous moments as well, mainly the descriptions of the author’s past lovers or the Bible study scene in the beginning. What comes out though is that The Day is not only a love letter to a missing parent but, and more importantly, also a statement about how women are treated in Lebanon: They cannot attend burials, one monologue is about rape, another is about marriage. As one can guess these sections also have a tragic aspect.
The Day Nina Simone Stopped Singing is barely 70 pages long but it is a powerful piece on war and feminism. It is eye opening and sure to leave an affect on the reader. The dark comic vibe, doesn’t alleviate matters but drives into the mind the sheer absurdity of war crossed with a fanatical notion of religion.
audaciaray's review against another edition
3.0
Intense and horrifying, all about freedom and punishment and chaos.
It's a lightning fast read, and left me wishing there was more of it and more in depth from the writer. The style is very matter of fact - this terrible thing happened, then another. It will definitely stock with me, but I wish the writer was more introspective.
It's a lightning fast read, and left me wishing there was more of it and more in depth from the writer. The style is very matter of fact - this terrible thing happened, then another. It will definitely stock with me, but I wish the writer was more introspective.
suebarsby's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic, horrific tale of one girl coming of age in war torn Lebanon. While you may admire her father for not making his daughters follow religious rules, he leaves them without any guidance at all & the consequences for Darina are dangerous & ultimately terrible and cruel. Fascinating but sparse telling.
allbookedup_'s review against another edition
4.0
When I started reading this book I thought it was a funny coming to age story where the dad is joking about getting your period and warning you about bras. By the end of the book I was so moved and so in awe of the life of this woman the coming of age idea seemed to vanish in the air.
You don’t understand violence that you don’t see or experience in your lifetime. If it didn’t happen in your country or to someone you know it’s almost like it doesn’t exist. This book was a real eye opener about a civil war that really happened, even if no one I know lived through it or no one’s family had to come from their country to mine. Taking place during the Lebanese War Ms. Al-Joundi describes the war through her eyes and all the things life has happen even if war is occurring: sex, drugs, and terrible violence and all.
You don’t understand violence that you don’t see or experience in your lifetime. If it didn’t happen in your country or to someone you know it’s almost like it doesn’t exist. This book was a real eye opener about a civil war that really happened, even if no one I know lived through it or no one’s family had to come from their country to mine. Taking place during the Lebanese War Ms. Al-Joundi describes the war through her eyes and all the things life has happen even if war is occurring: sex, drugs, and terrible violence and all.
lauren_endnotes's review against another edition
4.0
"I was at an ungrateful age, neither woman nor child, but prematurely adult as well because the war had robbed us of our childhood."
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From THE DAY NINA SIMONE STOPPED SINGING by Darina al-Joundi and Mohamed Kacimi, translated from the French (Lebanon) by Marjolijn de Jager
I've had varied experiences with memoirs. Some are beautifully done with rich details, others need a good editor to slice and dice and build a narrative. A few good life stories does not always a good memoir make... Or something like that.
Now take Darina al-Joundi. Her writing style (co-authored with Kacimi) is spare. Bare even. In one short sentence, she'll mention some sort of horrific atrocity or major life-changing event, and then just move on to the next thing with little to no detail or description of the lasting effects. Other writers would spend (at least) half the book describing what she just synthesized into ONE sentence.
Is this resilience? Is it dismissal? Still trying to figure out... But what I know is that I've never read anything like it.
The daughter of a secular Syrian father, and a Lebanese mother, she describes the Lebanon War/invasion, and its various factions (Muslims, Christians, and Druze - Israelis, refugee Syrians, and Lebanese) her unconventional "no rules" childhood and an experimental (taboo) youth. It is violent and brutal, and in the end it's about a woman who has been through a whole bunch of shit in her life, and is now an actor and director in France, advocating for women's rights.
#witmonth #womenintranslation
.
From THE DAY NINA SIMONE STOPPED SINGING by Darina al-Joundi and Mohamed Kacimi, translated from the French (Lebanon) by Marjolijn de Jager
I've had varied experiences with memoirs. Some are beautifully done with rich details, others need a good editor to slice and dice and build a narrative. A few good life stories does not always a good memoir make... Or something like that.
Now take Darina al-Joundi. Her writing style (co-authored with Kacimi) is spare. Bare even. In one short sentence, she'll mention some sort of horrific atrocity or major life-changing event, and then just move on to the next thing with little to no detail or description of the lasting effects. Other writers would spend (at least) half the book describing what she just synthesized into ONE sentence.
Is this resilience? Is it dismissal? Still trying to figure out... But what I know is that I've never read anything like it.
The daughter of a secular Syrian father, and a Lebanese mother, she describes the Lebanon War/invasion, and its various factions (Muslims, Christians, and Druze - Israelis, refugee Syrians, and Lebanese) her unconventional "no rules" childhood and an experimental (taboo) youth. It is violent and brutal, and in the end it's about a woman who has been through a whole bunch of shit in her life, and is now an actor and director in France, advocating for women's rights.
#witmonth #womenintranslation
princeofthemoon's review against another edition
3.25
her life is absolutely insane… also dany is most likely bisexual.
suebarsby's review
4.0
Graphic, horrific tale of one girl coming of age in war torn Lebanon. While you may admire her father for not making his daughters follow religious rules, he leaves them without any guidance at all & the consequences for Darina are dangerous & ultimately terrible and cruel. Fascinating but sparse telling.
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