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A review by readhikerepeat
In the Kingdom of Men by Kim Barnes
3.0
From The Book Wheel:
In the Kingdom of Men was both fantastic and disappointing all at the same time. It was fantastic because the story was great, the characters (mostly) real, and the premise wonderful. It was disappointing because the advertised portion of the book was such a minute detail that I felt a little bit shafted.
I have no doubt that Kim Barnes is a talented writer and I was very much caught up in this story about a poor girl who is dragged from the drudgery of her everyday life and into the arms of a star athlete at the local high school. Together, Gin and Mason flee their hometown in Oklahoma in search of bigger and greater things until they arrive in Saudi Arabia, where Mason gains employment with an oil company. Unfortunately, the job requires more time away than at home, and their marriage naturally suffers.
Set in the late 1960′s, Gin battles what many housewives at the time fought against: boredom. Only for Gin, the boredom was worse because she was confined to a compound in a country that required women to take the veil and remain indoors. Rebelling against the rules and finally coming into her own, Gin ignores general decorum and befriends the house boy, leaves the compound, and even wears a bathing suit! Meanwhile, Mason defies the norm by advocating for workers rights and trying to uncover the mystery behind his predecessor’s abrupt departure.
For the full review, click here.
In the Kingdom of Men was both fantastic and disappointing all at the same time. It was fantastic because the story was great, the characters (mostly) real, and the premise wonderful. It was disappointing because the advertised portion of the book was such a minute detail that I felt a little bit shafted.
I have no doubt that Kim Barnes is a talented writer and I was very much caught up in this story about a poor girl who is dragged from the drudgery of her everyday life and into the arms of a star athlete at the local high school. Together, Gin and Mason flee their hometown in Oklahoma in search of bigger and greater things until they arrive in Saudi Arabia, where Mason gains employment with an oil company. Unfortunately, the job requires more time away than at home, and their marriage naturally suffers.
Set in the late 1960′s, Gin battles what many housewives at the time fought against: boredom. Only for Gin, the boredom was worse because she was confined to a compound in a country that required women to take the veil and remain indoors. Rebelling against the rules and finally coming into her own, Gin ignores general decorum and befriends the house boy, leaves the compound, and even wears a bathing suit! Meanwhile, Mason defies the norm by advocating for workers rights and trying to uncover the mystery behind his predecessor’s abrupt departure.
For the full review, click here.