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A review by carriepond
Minor Detail by Adania Shibli
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Minor Detail is divided into two parts. The first is set in 1949 and unflinchingly recounts the rape and murder of an Arab girl by Israeli troops. The second is set in present-day Ramallah and follows an unnamed narrator, a woman determined to tell the full story after noting a "minor detail" in an article about it-- the girl's death was 25 years to the day before the narrator was born.
On a craft level, this was brilliant-- Shibli's matter-of-fact prose effectively contrasts the horrors it recounts, and she weaves so many elements from the first section into the second section. The effect of these devices is a reading experience that feels so tense, so filled with foreboding that reading it feels like a held breath. A devastating read that puts in sharp relief the trauma of not only war but also present-day occupation.
On a craft level, this was brilliant-- Shibli's matter-of-fact prose effectively contrasts the horrors it recounts, and she weaves so many elements from the first section into the second section. The effect of these devices is a reading experience that feels so tense, so filled with foreboding that reading it feels like a held breath. A devastating read that puts in sharp relief the trauma of not only war but also present-day occupation.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Murder
Minor: Blood