shewreads 's review for:

American War by Omar El Akkad

4.0

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Equal parts dystopian and speculative, American War leads the reader through the second US Civil War, which, on its surface, is fought over the ban of fossil fuels. El Akkad’s portrayal of uncontrollable climate change is terrifyingly persuasive, but the resultant reconfiguration of world powers is a bit dubious. Most impressively, the readers can’t help but empathize with the protagonist, a terrorist by today’s standards, because we are by her side during her justifiable genesis. Overall, El Akkad should be commended for brilliantly showing how war lingers long after its end; I just wish he had created more compelling characters in addition to Sarat.