A review by ktrain3900
Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was an experience, not a novel, more patiently and precisely crafted than pretty much anything I've ever read. The parallels--minor details--between the two sections (wandering in the desert, the howling dogs, spiders, getting lost and finding, the insomnia) are almost too overt, but carry a weight that pulls somewhere just shy of gravity. It is slow, almost plodding, small but powerful, with a feeling of the inevitable that will bewitch you into believing in inevitability...almost.  

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Colonisation, and Murder

If you are at all inclined to give tough content a chance in your reading, try this book. The subject matter is well-handled by exquisite writing that never goes any farther than it absolutely has to to tell the story.