Reviews

Reading this book was hard work! The novel can be described as a hyperrealistic piece rather than a work of fiction. A documentation of a painful journey from south to north resembling the Syrian conflict itself as its flames travelled across the country sweeping every inch of land. As tension builds between characters and their trip becomes all the more precarious their hellish ride reveals how much of yourself you're bound to lose when living under a an opressive regime. The hardships they encounter along the way mirror the protagonist's innermost struggles as well as the country's and its people's. The writer is a Syrian through and through. I highly recommend delving into this eye-opening tragedy for those curious to understand what it means to live in Assad's Syria.

donasbooks's review against another edition

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4.0

Read Around the World Challenge 2023 -- Read a book set in or written by an author born in each of 50 countries on the Asian continent: Book 13 / 50: Syria

kamckim's review against another edition

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5.0

Khalifa’s writing and Price’s translation is haunting. In describing the journey of Bolbol and his attempt to simply bury their father’s body in his hometown, according to his dying wishes, Khalifa tells the story of the suffering that is happening in Syria, but more importantly he explains the how and why, delving into the psyche of the Syrian people. Plenty of Syrian writers have covered the war. I’m immediately reminded of Samar Yazbek’s work. What elevates Khalifa’s work to literary fiction is his stream of consciousness storytelling. He flows seamlessly from present events to his characters observations of those events into past memories, jumbled in time and space. And the memories of the characters tell not only their stories, but also the stories of those they loved and lost, of success and failure. These stories, in turn, are a bit of a metanarrative for the Syrians in conflict, their motives, their choices to leave or to stay, their survival techniques. These large issues come under the microscope in the lives of his Bolbol, his brother, his sister, and their dead father. There is a good balance between describing the trip and moving the plot forward and the flashbacks in the minds of the characters. He also manages to change voice very subtly without the reader even recognizing it. It’s a true art, and I would compare his style to William Faulkner in this regard. It’s also existential, similar to Camus, but more interesting to read, as there are quite a few moments of sardonic humor. And, if I may, it’s a bit like The Walking Dead, in that the title Death is Hard Work is a bit misleading. There’s the existential recognition that we will all eventually die. It’s just a question of where and when. But in Khalifa’s Syria, if death is hard work, living is the hardest work.

bananna's review

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dark sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

erinsbookshelves's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-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? Yes

4.25

gottarun31's review against another edition

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4.0

I didn't love this book. But it's an important story to hear.

Syria has been in my mind in some form since 2015. Recently, I've been thinking a lot about how it seems we've abandoned coverage/people don't seem to be talking about how there is a whole country wrecked and displaced. Millions of people's lives in limbo.

Death is Hard Work is about 3 adult children attempting to get their father's dead body across Syria amidst a horrific warring environment. I originally thought the title derived from that plotline. I felt like it more pointed to how there is a country full of people who are not scared of death anymore and are ready and waiting to die at any moment. The descriptions of the awful checkpoints, the torture, the raids, the bribery, etc. shine a light on how little we(I) comprehend what is going on. I will hopefully never have to be exposed to those conditions, but they are SO REAL for people in this world. This was a very important story to tell. Khalifa did a wonderful job.

mattcowardgibbs's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny reflective slow-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

4.0

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