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nerdese 's review for:
I Remember Beirut
by Zeina Abirached
This is between a 3.5 and a 4. Apparently, this book is more of a companion to the author’s memoir as opposed to a standalone text. It is slight and spare, and can be read within 20-30 minutes. The repeated refrain of “I remember” is really what this book is about, as evidenced by the title. It’s not a straight memoir necessarily, but more diaristic. The recollections of a child who grew up in chaos, in the middle of the Lebanese Civil War, and is working through what some of those memories meant. The spareness of the text left a bit to be desired for me, since I entered thinking it WAS going to be a more thorough memoir text. And even keeping this spare style in mind, I was hoping for a bit more heft to the text, and possible reflection on these memories. That the minimal text used would pack a stronger punch, so to speak.
The style and content of this book will no doubt draw comparisons to Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis about the revolution in Iran, which did offer a child’s story through the lens of an adult looking back. I found Satrapi’s recollections and writing incredibly moving while still being humorous, and while I can see what Abirached was going for with this book about a similar time of chaos and change in Lebanon, it didn’t quite have the same effect for me as a reader, even though I had a bit more personal investment in the narrative.
I have just requested the author’s “full” memoir A Game for Swallows and am keen to see how the two texts work when read as more of a pair. As someone with proud Lebanese heritage, I am keen to explore more of the country’s history and people through its native authors and creators.
The style and content of this book will no doubt draw comparisons to Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis about the revolution in Iran, which did offer a child’s story through the lens of an adult looking back. I found Satrapi’s recollections and writing incredibly moving while still being humorous, and while I can see what Abirached was going for with this book about a similar time of chaos and change in Lebanon, it didn’t quite have the same effect for me as a reader, even though I had a bit more personal investment in the narrative.
I have just requested the author’s “full” memoir A Game for Swallows and am keen to see how the two texts work when read as more of a pair. As someone with proud Lebanese heritage, I am keen to explore more of the country’s history and people through its native authors and creators.