Reviews

Paradise by Abdulrazak Gurnah

kmsourada's review

adventurous emotional reflective 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? No

4.75

I have a difficult time rating this book; shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1994 plus, Gurnah received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2021. It is a book that with another read could deepen my appreciation of what Gurnah set out to achieve.

Things I really liked: 

• Gurnah never told me what to see - I had to dive in and do some discovery for myself
• the storytelling aspect threaded throughout
• the dichotomy of "Paradise"
• character interactions added movement to the story
• how events ordered the days for the main character Yusuf
• Gurnah's writing kept me as an observer and Yusuf was a quiet, observant character

booksandabackpack's review against another edition

• 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

a_rose7's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

meganturnsthepage's review

dark informative reflective slow-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

4.0

kristenesantos's review

adventurous reflective fast-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

3.0

sseul1's review

adventurous relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

christinemaschine's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective slow-paced

4.0

charlottej's review against another edition

adventurous reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

thelifeoflynn's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

1.5

• Written by a Nobel prize winner.
• Slow paced, not a comfortable writing style to read for me, had a hard time getting through the book and was on the edge of not finishing multiple times. When I did finally finish, all I could think was “pfieuw, I made it”
• Insightful in African culture and the beginning of colonialism from their perspective.
• How harsh to be sold to pay for your father’s debt and not knowing what’s going on or if that person is even related to you.
• Lots of violence, lots of loss, a raw image of living in poverty.

eunicek82's review

adventurous challenging informative sad medium-paced

I think I’m missing some fundamental knowledge to be able to completely make sense of this book. The reading itself is not hard. The story is straightforward and so is the writing. Yet, I kept feeling like there was a deeper meaning that I wasn’t quite catching. I’m very glad that I will be discussing this book at book club.