ecari 's review for:

The Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar

3.0

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This is really a 3.5 - the author bit off a lot with these two intricate stories and although I didn’t find it mind-blowing, it was an engaging read. The main character has synesthesia, which provides the opportunity for the author to lean into visual descriptions of sounds and words, which I enjoyed but became a bit tiring by the end of the book. The mythological story provided a needed respite from the harrowing modern day story of a displaced family. I became a bit frustrated with some of the choices made in that modern story related to the mom’s communication with her daughters, but overall this was the most real and heart wrenching depiction of being a refugee that I’ve read in fiction. And the myth was beautiful and empowering to girls and women.

Popsugar 2022 Reading Challenge - A book set during a holiday