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A review by katykelly
The Last White Man by Mohsin Hamid
4.0
A new Metamorphosis - strange structure/narrative but relevant.
This started very much like Gregor Samsa's classic story, in my head at least. Which is not a just comparison. Gregor awakens to find himself turned into an insect. A creature un-humanlike in its appearance, one that would be shunned and vilified, feared and punished. Anders awakens to find his white skin has turned to brown.
And there's the heart of it really. Because that's very similar to how Anders feels about himself, and how he feels others are now going to see him. Because of his skin colour.
It's a troublesome book to put your finger on. This is Anders' story yes, but it's not told from his point of view. The author gives us his character's thoughts, but it's wider than this - his sometime lover Oona, her bigoted (in a very contemporary right-wing way) mother, their perceptions about this growing phenomenon are key to how the reader sees Anders' new world.
For it's spreading. And shockingly, so is violence and lawlessness. Anders is no longer recognised by those he knows. How will his dying father feel when presented with this 'new' son?
Is this an allegory? Does it expose (not always) hidden prejudices and resentments? The cause of this change is not explored, though there is one mention of a cure being touted, it doesn't veer towards religion or politics, it is more the societal effect and that on a personal level of how people deal with other people when confronted with this sudden transformation.
Should it make a difference? It is interesting to watch how Anders and Oona's burgeoning relationship alters through the story, in front of society's background of hate, fear and suspicion.
It's a disturbing read, as every reader will project themselves into these characters and this situation and wonder how it would be were this real. How would 'our' society react? Our families? Our selves? And what point is the writer trying to make... hard for me to put an exact mark on it, but it's a book I won't be forgetting.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.
This started very much like Gregor Samsa's classic story, in my head at least. Which is not a just comparison. Gregor awakens to find himself turned into an insect. A creature un-humanlike in its appearance, one that would be shunned and vilified, feared and punished. Anders awakens to find his white skin has turned to brown.
And there's the heart of it really. Because that's very similar to how Anders feels about himself, and how he feels others are now going to see him. Because of his skin colour.
It's a troublesome book to put your finger on. This is Anders' story yes, but it's not told from his point of view. The author gives us his character's thoughts, but it's wider than this - his sometime lover Oona, her bigoted (in a very contemporary right-wing way) mother, their perceptions about this growing phenomenon are key to how the reader sees Anders' new world.
For it's spreading. And shockingly, so is violence and lawlessness. Anders is no longer recognised by those he knows. How will his dying father feel when presented with this 'new' son?
Is this an allegory? Does it expose (not always) hidden prejudices and resentments? The cause of this change is not explored, though there is one mention of a cure being touted, it doesn't veer towards religion or politics, it is more the societal effect and that on a personal level of how people deal with other people when confronted with this sudden transformation.
Should it make a difference? It is interesting to watch how Anders and Oona's burgeoning relationship alters through the story, in front of society's background of hate, fear and suspicion.
It's a disturbing read, as every reader will project themselves into these characters and this situation and wonder how it would be were this real. How would 'our' society react? Our families? Our selves? And what point is the writer trying to make... hard for me to put an exact mark on it, but it's a book I won't be forgetting.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.