A review by atomic_tourist
Arabesques by Anton Shammas, Vivian Eden

challenging dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

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

Belated updating my 2024 reads so far. Wish I had time to write more - Arabesques was lovely, like an amalgamation of a poem, memoir, novel, and historical account all in one. Some may take this in bad faith, but it reminded me of Oz's A Tale of Love and Darkness, which is perhaps meta given that the character of Yehoshua Bar-On is doubtless inspired, at least in part, by Oz himself. Really want to read the original (in Hebrew) one day.