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A review by anetq
Broken Glass by Alain Mabanckou
2.0
Rather uninteresting book about literary drunkenness in a congolese bar (and just consider the missed potential in that sentence!) Though it might be a hit among young male students of literature with an admiration for Bukowski, and the likes. Oh and for the literary student there's a running game of "Spot the title"... Holden even shows up at the end asking about the ducks! (but don't worry there's a hint that he's from a book with "...the rye" in the title).
Stylisticly it's a strange creature: This book has no full stops, it just runs on and on, with the pointless tales of the drunk men and the women they blame for their misfortune (and where that trick makes me fly through the pages in a Saramago book, here it's just an annoying mess) maybe there's a linguistic beauty to some of the rambling on in the french original, I wouldn't know, if so it didn't really translate.
It may shine through in my description, that I'm not really amused. Or entertained. And while I appreciate the attempt to stick to the premise of this being the scribblings of a drunken disgraced former school teacher, I just don't see the point.
So if you're looking for a story revolving around the life in a congolese bar (who isn't?) Please read [b:Tram 83|25712965|Tram 83|Fiston Mwanza Mujila|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434090752s/25712965.jpg|42621228] in stead! (yes, it's from the other Congo)
Stylisticly it's a strange creature: This book has no full stops, it just runs on and on, with the pointless tales of the drunk men and the women they blame for their misfortune (and where that trick makes me fly through the pages in a Saramago book, here it's just an annoying mess) maybe there's a linguistic beauty to some of the rambling on in the french original, I wouldn't know, if so it didn't really translate.
It may shine through in my description, that I'm not really amused. Or entertained. And while I appreciate the attempt to stick to the premise of this being the scribblings of a drunken disgraced former school teacher, I just don't see the point.
So if you're looking for a story revolving around the life in a congolese bar (who isn't?) Please read [b:Tram 83|25712965|Tram 83|Fiston Mwanza Mujila|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434090752s/25712965.jpg|42621228] in stead! (yes, it's from the other Congo)