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adaleigh29's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
hikeplayski's review
3.0
I’m so disappointed to be giving this book 3 stars. It was 5-star worthy for me until about 75% of the way through and then it just draggggged. It was just 100 pages too long. The character arcs became flat and it was hard to stay engaged. I’m a new mom, so perhaps my exhaustion influenced my reading experience.
becsmars's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
jess_mango's review
5.0
4.5 stars
Wow! A stunning family saga from Palestinian-American author Hala Alyan. This story spans the time from the mid 1900's through current day, from Lebanon and Syria to the cities and suburbs of America. The story is told from the perspective of several members of the Nasr family. The Nasr family is comprised of a Syrian mother, a Lebanese father and their 3 (now adult) children who were raised in America. When the patriarch announces that he has decided to sell his family home in Beirut, it sends the family into an emotional and confused tailspin. Why does he want to sell his family's house? That summer, the whole family travels to Beirut where they reflect on their lives. Their secrets, their desires and their disappointments all come to the surface.
I loved this one. It was all too real and powerful with all of the family drama. I loved learning about the members of the family and their pains, jealousies, and temptations. There are missed connections, misunderstandings, revelations and everything you would want from a family saga. I loved the setting of Beirut and Damascus. The author did a fantastic job creating realistic characters and establishing a sense of place. I highly recommend this one.
What to listen to while reading...
Here's a playlist for the book created by Belletrist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OKVtV9gdxeAQc03iJXk0z?si=266ae0bf4b8f4447
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!
Wow! A stunning family saga from Palestinian-American author Hala Alyan. This story spans the time from the mid 1900's through current day, from Lebanon and Syria to the cities and suburbs of America. The story is told from the perspective of several members of the Nasr family. The Nasr family is comprised of a Syrian mother, a Lebanese father and their 3 (now adult) children who were raised in America. When the patriarch announces that he has decided to sell his family home in Beirut, it sends the family into an emotional and confused tailspin. Why does he want to sell his family's house? That summer, the whole family travels to Beirut where they reflect on their lives. Their secrets, their desires and their disappointments all come to the surface.
I loved this one. It was all too real and powerful with all of the family drama. I loved learning about the members of the family and their pains, jealousies, and temptations. There are missed connections, misunderstandings, revelations and everything you would want from a family saga. I loved the setting of Beirut and Damascus. The author did a fantastic job creating realistic characters and establishing a sense of place. I highly recommend this one.
What to listen to while reading...
Here's a playlist for the book created by Belletrist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3OKVtV9gdxeAQc03iJXk0z?si=266ae0bf4b8f4447
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!
melodys_library's review
3.0
I don’t want to deter anyone from reading this, but overall, I liked this less than I thought I would.
I thought the author painted a great picture of the stark contrasts between daily lives and war in a war torn city. There may be fires, protests, violence and bombings, but for many, life goes on with regular old family drama, birthday parties, broken dreams, dancing in night clubs. She also has really poetic descriptions that really engage the senses.
It’s a thick book with a slow buildup. This is very character driven, so definitely stay away if you’re not here for that. Each chapter is written from the third person point of view of a different character, but they didn’t alternate in an appealing or really organized way for me. I also was only really interested in one character (Mazna), but I didn’t really form an emotional connection to anyone.
I thought the author painted a great picture of the stark contrasts between daily lives and war in a war torn city. There may be fires, protests, violence and bombings, but for many, life goes on with regular old family drama, birthday parties, broken dreams, dancing in night clubs. She also has really poetic descriptions that really engage the senses.
It’s a thick book with a slow buildup. This is very character driven, so definitely stay away if you’re not here for that. Each chapter is written from the third person point of view of a different character, but they didn’t alternate in an appealing or really organized way for me. I also was only really interested in one character (Mazna), but I didn’t really form an emotional connection to anyone.
chloexcoy's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.75
eastpt's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sherrise's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
shenanigans304's review
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Stunning book. Great char cter development. Well woven intergenerational tale.
tmdreads's review against another edition
4.5
With messy family drama that is realistic in its complexity of relationships, This is an engaging literary fiction that speaks to the legacy of war and immigration.