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maria_hossain's review
1.0
I’m a bit conflicted with this book. I started it with much enthusiasm, since the book sounded really awesome and I was surprised NetGalley granted me an eARC. But about 37% into the book, the enthusiasm dimmed down.
Because of one big problematic aspect that glared down at me as I raced to finish this book.
Okay spoilers galore, please read it with caution.
The book started with the protagonist, a black gay teen, James Mills writing a letter to his sister, Anna (who was in America the entirety of the book). He hid in a dilapidated hostel with his Brazilian boyfriend, Tomas, before posting the letter to a mailbox nearby. All hell broke loose once he got to the mailbox.
Since then, Tomas and James were on the run, their destination the American embassy in Pristina, the capital of a war wrecked Kosovo. On the way, they encountered lots of things that threatened their lives and all those they held dear.
Okay, now time for the spoiler filled part.
I loved the relationship between James and Tomas. It was so lovingly portrayed, their love for each other growing stronger and stronger as each page passed. They obviously cared for each other and their heat filled banter made me sigh in happiness.
That at least, this book had a happy, healthy LGBTQIAP+ relationship. And on top of that, a gay relationship between two PoC, one black, one brown. And to find healthy, present parents and sibling relationship made this book soar my heart even more. Each letters to Anna Mills showed the close bond James shared with his older sister and I just wanted to sob in joy.
But then came the wreck called Beqiri, or in the earlier chapters, Professor Beqiri.
An Oxford graduated Albanian, his whole presence in the book was reduced down to one cardboard cutout portrayal.
He is a terrorist.
In a blink, the book that made my heart soar soured my mind. It became another book showing Muslim men as a terrorist.
And I’d have not felt as uncomfortable as now if besides being a terrorist, Beqiri was shown with some positive traits. But he was not.
Nope.
I get it that since Beqiri kidnapped and tortured many foreigners, he was a bad guy. He was doing an awful thing. James had his parents held hostage. Of course he wouldn’t and couldn’t see Beqiri as anything but a terrible person. A bad guy. The villain in his story.
But…
Beqiri was shown to be merciless and unsympathetic toward anyone and everyone, even to his own comrades. He fed a dying Serbian soldier to his dogs. He killed one of his men for a mistake by kicking him to death, and didn’t feel the slightest remorse for his best comrade's wounds. As if the independence of Kosovo was his individual goal and nobody else mattered. He was reduced to a terrorist, his humanity stripped bare and into a monster. The author had plenty of places to show he was a grey person. When I said plenty, I meant plenty.
•He could’ve been a doting son, who loved his parents and to reduce their suffering and oppression in this country, he chose this dark path.
•He could’ve been a good mentor or leader or comrade to his fellow fighters, who mourned for their deaths and grieved for them. Who wanted them to live and valued their lives instead of seeing them as mere army to fight for his victory.
•He even could have been showed to be an excellent teacher before the Kosovo war. But he was rather shown as a zealot, a jingo who would do anything to win the war.
During Bangladesh’s War of Liberation in 1971, our freedom fighters fought together and mourned together for one another’s death. But the way Beqiri was shown to be was not as a freedom fighter with shades of grey, rather a black and white Muslim Albanian terrorist killing and kidnapping Americans and Europeans for hostage.
Even when Beqiri was a professor to James, not his family’s kidnapper, he was shown in a negative light. And James was said to be empathetic? Well, he did not empathize with Beqiri as well. If not with a villain like Beqiri, then maybe his people? But no. Not one ounce of empathy did James show toward the locals, not even before the war. Rather they either faded into his POV as clamoring, fear-mongering rebels, or frightened people fleeing the war wrecked Kosovo, or someone who could only terrorize and did not deserve their protests of freedom. James even once said:
James: “So let me guess. Your ragtag group of bandits, fighting for justice across Kosovo, graduated to what? Kidnappings? Beatings?”
Beqiri: “And murder if we needed to, yes…”
Bangladesh was once part of Pakistan. We’d been through a lot of the discrimination Beqiri mentioned his people went through under the Serbian rule. Yet his side wasn’t shown in an empathetic light. None of the discrimination the Albanians faced from the Serbian rulers were shown in the book at all. Which was disheartening, since a Serbian soldier was shown in a positive light, fighting for his country. But anyone fighting for Kosovo’s freedom was shown to be a jingo.
If a group of subjugated people demanded freedom from their oppressors, was it so bad? Yes, Beqiri’s actions were cruel and nothing could justify them. But what the author could’ve shown plenty of times was the locals in a positive light. That war is not black and white, rather shades of grey.
What disappointed me the most was the author’s note at the end of the eARC. He stated he knew he’d painted the Albanians in a villainous hue. This disappointed me the most.
In a time when Muslim ban is still fresh in everyone’s mind, when Hollywood enjoys showing Muslim men as oppressors and terrorists, this portrayal is disheartening.
I am not discouraging or forbidding anyone to buy this book. Far from it, I’ll urge you to read it for its beautiful portrayal of healthy parent-child relationship, the narration from an adoptive black child’s POV, and adorable sibling bond. AND this book has one of the best LGBTQIAP+ representation as well as a black male teen as its narrator and protagonist.
But I’ll also request you to pick up this book knowing its flaw, aware of its problematic Muslim and Albanian portrayals, so you can caution your Muslim and/or Albanian friends before you recommend it to them, or if they pick up this book.
Because of one big problematic aspect that glared down at me as I raced to finish this book.
Okay spoilers galore, please read it with caution.
The book started with the protagonist, a black gay teen, James Mills writing a letter to his sister, Anna (who was in America the entirety of the book). He hid in a dilapidated hostel with his Brazilian boyfriend, Tomas, before posting the letter to a mailbox nearby. All hell broke loose once he got to the mailbox.
Since then, Tomas and James were on the run, their destination the American embassy in Pristina, the capital of a war wrecked Kosovo. On the way, they encountered lots of things that threatened their lives and all those they held dear.
Okay, now time for the spoiler filled part.
I loved the relationship between James and Tomas. It was so lovingly portrayed, their love for each other growing stronger and stronger as each page passed. They obviously cared for each other and their heat filled banter made me sigh in happiness.
That at least, this book had a happy, healthy LGBTQIAP+ relationship. And on top of that, a gay relationship between two PoC, one black, one brown. And to find healthy, present parents and sibling relationship made this book soar my heart even more. Each letters to Anna Mills showed the close bond James shared with his older sister and I just wanted to sob in joy.
But then came the wreck called Beqiri, or in the earlier chapters, Professor Beqiri.
An Oxford graduated Albanian, his whole presence in the book was reduced down to one cardboard cutout portrayal.
He is a terrorist.
In a blink, the book that made my heart soar soured my mind. It became another book showing Muslim men as a terrorist.
And I’d have not felt as uncomfortable as now if besides being a terrorist, Beqiri was shown with some positive traits. But he was not.
Nope.
I get it that since Beqiri kidnapped and tortured many foreigners, he was a bad guy. He was doing an awful thing. James had his parents held hostage. Of course he wouldn’t and couldn’t see Beqiri as anything but a terrible person. A bad guy. The villain in his story.
But…
Beqiri was shown to be merciless and unsympathetic toward anyone and everyone, even to his own comrades. He fed a dying Serbian soldier to his dogs. He killed one of his men for a mistake by kicking him to death, and didn’t feel the slightest remorse for his best comrade's wounds. As if the independence of Kosovo was his individual goal and nobody else mattered. He was reduced to a terrorist, his humanity stripped bare and into a monster. The author had plenty of places to show he was a grey person. When I said plenty, I meant plenty.
•He could’ve been a doting son, who loved his parents and to reduce their suffering and oppression in this country, he chose this dark path.
•He could’ve been a good mentor or leader or comrade to his fellow fighters, who mourned for their deaths and grieved for them. Who wanted them to live and valued their lives instead of seeing them as mere army to fight for his victory.
•He even could have been showed to be an excellent teacher before the Kosovo war. But he was rather shown as a zealot, a jingo who would do anything to win the war.
During Bangladesh’s War of Liberation in 1971, our freedom fighters fought together and mourned together for one another’s death. But the way Beqiri was shown to be was not as a freedom fighter with shades of grey, rather a black and white Muslim Albanian terrorist killing and kidnapping Americans and Europeans for hostage.
Even when Beqiri was a professor to James, not his family’s kidnapper, he was shown in a negative light. And James was said to be empathetic? Well, he did not empathize with Beqiri as well. If not with a villain like Beqiri, then maybe his people? But no. Not one ounce of empathy did James show toward the locals, not even before the war. Rather they either faded into his POV as clamoring, fear-mongering rebels, or frightened people fleeing the war wrecked Kosovo, or someone who could only terrorize and did not deserve their protests of freedom. James even once said:
James: “So let me guess. Your ragtag group of bandits, fighting for justice across Kosovo, graduated to what? Kidnappings? Beatings?”
Beqiri: “And murder if we needed to, yes…”
Bangladesh was once part of Pakistan. We’d been through a lot of the discrimination Beqiri mentioned his people went through under the Serbian rule. Yet his side wasn’t shown in an empathetic light. None of the discrimination the Albanians faced from the Serbian rulers were shown in the book at all. Which was disheartening, since a Serbian soldier was shown in a positive light, fighting for his country. But anyone fighting for Kosovo’s freedom was shown to be a jingo.
If a group of subjugated people demanded freedom from their oppressors, was it so bad? Yes, Beqiri’s actions were cruel and nothing could justify them. But what the author could’ve shown plenty of times was the locals in a positive light. That war is not black and white, rather shades of grey.
What disappointed me the most was the author’s note at the end of the eARC. He stated he knew he’d painted the Albanians in a villainous hue. This disappointed me the most.
In a time when Muslim ban is still fresh in everyone’s mind, when Hollywood enjoys showing Muslim men as oppressors and terrorists, this portrayal is disheartening.
I am not discouraging or forbidding anyone to buy this book. Far from it, I’ll urge you to read it for its beautiful portrayal of healthy parent-child relationship, the narration from an adoptive black child’s POV, and adorable sibling bond. AND this book has one of the best LGBTQIAP+ representation as well as a black male teen as its narrator and protagonist.
But I’ll also request you to pick up this book knowing its flaw, aware of its problematic Muslim and Albanian portrayals, so you can caution your Muslim and/or Albanian friends before you recommend it to them, or if they pick up this book.
zaheerah's review
3.0
Content warnings: TBA
* I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion of the book.
James has begrudgingly followed his parents country to country all his life. And suddenly, he's separated from sister and has never felt so alone. Then comes, Tomas. And then comes the war. A historical fiction set during the Kosovo War, James and Tomas must survive life on the run and face unspeakable choices to return to their family.
This book took a while to hook me in. I didn't exactly understand what was happening in the first chapter. But once I understood, the story began to unravel in a good way. A tale of survival for these two boys who were willing to do anything to survive the war and return to safety. Together, they escape the cruel world until they're both unwillingly yanked back into danger. It's actually a shorter read than I expected but a strong one that carried itself all the way through.
James and Tomas are both on the run after James's parents disappear, and are forced to make their way to safety before they're captured too. There's letter addressed to James's sister at the beginning of each chapter, dated long before the war breaks out and shows a closer look into the relationships James had with his parents, sister, friends and how he meets Tomas. It was a good way of introducing their relationship and how they met and fell in love without taking away from the journey they're on in the main story.
Overall, Kosoko Jackson has delivered brilliantly on his debut. A Place for Wolves has found its own place in my heart.
* I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion of the book.
James has begrudgingly followed his parents country to country all his life. And suddenly, he's separated from sister and has never felt so alone. Then comes, Tomas. And then comes the war. A historical fiction set during the Kosovo War, James and Tomas must survive life on the run and face unspeakable choices to return to their family.
This book took a while to hook me in. I didn't exactly understand what was happening in the first chapter. But once I understood, the story began to unravel in a good way. A tale of survival for these two boys who were willing to do anything to survive the war and return to safety. Together, they escape the cruel world until they're both unwillingly yanked back into danger. It's actually a shorter read than I expected but a strong one that carried itself all the way through.
James and Tomas are both on the run after James's parents disappear, and are forced to make their way to safety before they're captured too. There's letter addressed to James's sister at the beginning of each chapter, dated long before the war breaks out and shows a closer look into the relationships James had with his parents, sister, friends and how he meets Tomas. It was a good way of introducing their relationship and how they met and fell in love without taking away from the journey they're on in the main story.
Overall, Kosoko Jackson has delivered brilliantly on his debut. A Place for Wolves has found its own place in my heart.
anathema99's review
1.0
A book centered on Americans present during a genocide of Muslims, showing those Muslims as terrorists. The author would do well to quit writing.
tswynters's review
1.0
I personally know people who were affected by what happened when Yugoslavia broke apart into various different nation states and the genocides that happened. I think this book should be brought to suvivors' attention. The author should have had more respect than was shown in this book.
kendallreadsbooks's review
4.0
Edit: Since reading this book for the first time, the controversy surrounding it has been brought to my attention and is worth addressing. I mentioned in my initial review that it would have been nice to see some more historical background on this time in the not so distant past seeing as the American school system didn't touch on it, and I'm not one to be researching world history in my spare time. Due to my own ignorance, I was not aware of how harmful this story can be, seeing as this can come across as two westernized characters being placed in a war to create peril around them without them really being involved in the war at all. It diminishes the impact that this real event had on a massive group of people and their families. Despite the fact that I thought this was a positive portrayal of an LGBT relationship in a different setting and an interesting storyline, I think it's probably best that this was pulled from publication.
---
Okay. Wow.
Truly this story is unlike anything I've ever read and I actually am having a difficult time putting my thoughts into words since I have so little to compare it to. This book felt like something completely new to me and is definitely worth picking up for that fact alone. It's not a flawless story, but sometimes the best ones aren't.
Things I loved:
- Queer POC characters being utilized in a story that doesn't just revolve around being queer or POC. While those stories are obviously incredibly important as well, we also need to show the versatility of these characters in the same way we've treated cishet white kids forever. As the reader, while you're never able to forget the identities of these boys, they're never expressed in a way that feels unnatural or exploitative. They're boys who happen to be POC and queer, which are only elements of their characters, rather than the entire driving force of the story.
- Piggybacking off of that last point, an established, healthy queer relationship is so fantastic to see in YA. It wasn't picture-perfect, but it also wasn't ridiculously angsty. James and Tomas have a believable bond that feels real, and oh my god it's so refreshing.
- The fact that this book is set in a moment in history that I've never even learned about! Literature can be such a powerful gateway for people to experience moments in history, and even modern society, that they otherwise would've never even had heard about. Plus, this book felt very fresh since I've never experienced anything revolving around the Kosovo war.
- I'm a sucker for multi-format stories, so the use of letters to give backstory about James and his relationships was a major plus for me.
Things I didn't love:
- It felt very much like we were thrown into this story without being able to get to know the characters or the setting, making it a bit harder to connect with them, though the flashbacks through the letters did help with this!
- Seeing as I know so little about the Kosovo War, it would've been nice to have a bit more context about the conflict itself. I get that it isn't necessarily the job of the author to educate, but I worry some may be confused and turned off from how great this book is if they don't understand where they are and why.
- Clara?? I don't feel like there was ever enough development of her character to get me to care about her. Of course, her situation was terrible and I felt bad, but she seemed to come and go quite suddenly with fairly little impact.
- The ending. It's hopeful, but a little too open for my taste. I'm not completely mad at it, but I would've loved to see a bit into the future to see how one returns to "normal" life after undergoing so much trauma in such a short period of time.
All in all, this was a great story and I'm very excited to see what comes next from Kosoko Jackson. This feels like the beginning of something much bigger, after all.
---
Okay. Wow.
Truly this story is unlike anything I've ever read and I actually am having a difficult time putting my thoughts into words since I have so little to compare it to. This book felt like something completely new to me and is definitely worth picking up for that fact alone. It's not a flawless story, but sometimes the best ones aren't.
Things I loved:
- Queer POC characters being utilized in a story that doesn't just revolve around being queer or POC. While those stories are obviously incredibly important as well, we also need to show the versatility of these characters in the same way we've treated cishet white kids forever. As the reader, while you're never able to forget the identities of these boys, they're never expressed in a way that feels unnatural or exploitative. They're boys who happen to be POC and queer, which are only elements of their characters, rather than the entire driving force of the story.
- Piggybacking off of that last point, an established, healthy queer relationship is so fantastic to see in YA. It wasn't picture-perfect, but it also wasn't ridiculously angsty. James and Tomas have a believable bond that feels real, and oh my god it's so refreshing.
- The fact that this book is set in a moment in history that I've never even learned about! Literature can be such a powerful gateway for people to experience moments in history, and even modern society, that they otherwise would've never even had heard about. Plus, this book felt very fresh since I've never experienced anything revolving around the Kosovo war.
- I'm a sucker for multi-format stories, so the use of letters to give backstory about James and his relationships was a major plus for me.
Things I didn't love:
- It felt very much like we were thrown into this story without being able to get to know the characters or the setting, making it a bit harder to connect with them, though the flashbacks through the letters did help with this!
- Seeing as I know so little about the Kosovo War, it would've been nice to have a bit more context about the conflict itself. I get that it isn't necessarily the job of the author to educate, but I worry some may be confused and turned off from how great this book is if they don't understand where they are and why.
- Clara?? I don't feel like there was ever enough development of her character to get me to care about her. Of course, her situation was terrible and I felt bad, but she seemed to come and go quite suddenly with fairly little impact.
- The ending. It's hopeful, but a little too open for my taste. I'm not completely mad at it, but I would've loved to see a bit into the future to see how one returns to "normal" life after undergoing so much trauma in such a short period of time.
All in all, this was a great story and I'm very excited to see what comes next from Kosoko Jackson. This feels like the beginning of something much bigger, after all.
huckleberrycyn's review
1.0
How about we don’t vilify victims of genocide and falsely compare them to their oppressors because they choose violence to fight back? Mmkay?
lizzy_reads's review
After reading this review and and this one, I'm not going to read this book. Usually, one or two reviews don't put me off reading a book that I was interested in but this is too much for me. I'm happy that at least the own voices PoC LGBTQAIP+ rep is good but it doesn't justify how the setting is handled and the choices the author made about the main characters and the characters they chose to be the villains.
Please, at least read the first review it is well written and, if you don't know about this genocide, I hope that you research it, no matter if you are going to read the book or not. This is something that happened ~20 years ago!
Please, at least read the first review it is well written and, if you don't know about this genocide, I hope that you research it, no matter if you are going to read the book or not. This is something that happened ~20 years ago!
plumpaperbacks's review
The review that explains the issues with this novel: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2725140484
The author’s response and apology: https://twitter.com/kosokojackson/status/1101180233913376773?s=21
The author’s response and apology: https://twitter.com/kosokojackson/status/1101180233913376773?s=21
anthropologue's review
4.0
You never expect to meet the love of your life in Kosovo. You also never expect to be blown up while posting a letter to your sister. Told in an alternating narrative/epistolary style James Mills' flight from the small town his parents have been working in, under the banner of USAID, accompanied by his Brazilian boyfriend Tomas, to find a corner of safety during the conflict and genocide in Kosovo is riveting. An amazing exploration of character and stunning look at the absence of moral absolutes. A truly brilliant story.