Reviews

Paradise by Abdulrazak Gurnah

Only show reviews with written explanations

thelifeoflynn's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

Go to review page

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.

christiek's review

Go to review page

4.0

I liked so much about this book: Yusuf is a great coming of age character, his journey is different from what I've read before, he doesn't have a lot of choices, but when he does...they are impacting.