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A review by lillimoore
Turbulence by David Szalay
5.0
When I was in high school and a wannabe writer, always with a pen behind my ear, always toting journals and notebooks and extra scraps of paper, I used to write letters to strangers any time I travelled and stick them in the seat-back on the plane, wedged them between chair cushions in coffee shops, and left them wherever I could imagine a curious someone else finding them and getting something out of my words. This was a rather grandiose, romantic and pretentious moment in my life, but on the other hand, if I had been the recipient of these letters, I would have been immediately invested in their subject. I still to this day enjoy the concept, and might even take the pompous hobby back up after reading this superb book. I thought a stranger might enjoy a vignette of my own life.
Turbulence by David Szalay is an excellent and beautifully written series of 12 vignettes that highlights the concept of human interconnection across the world by following 12 people as each one of them travels from one airport to the next and someone they either know or encounter during their travels then begets the next chapter. Although short in its entirety and in every chapter, this book packed so much emotion and meaning into every word.
I loved this concept because I love a window into anyone's life. It's part of why I enjoy thrift stores and garage sales and people watching so much. Each of the twelve windows I got to peak through in this book, each brief moment with each character that I got to savor, was so indicative of who these people are, where they've been and where they're headed. The interconnectivity of it was a beautiful reminder of humanity. I particularly loved that the story ended where it began. It really emphasized how small this big world can be and how closely intertwined so many lives are without us realizing it. This review will remain short (by my standards), like the book it is about, because not much needs to be said to convey how much I enjoyed this. I will be adding this to my personal collection and will return to it many times over the years, and intend to give it as a gift in the future as well. It's just phenomenal.
Turbulence by David Szalay is an excellent and beautifully written series of 12 vignettes that highlights the concept of human interconnection across the world by following 12 people as each one of them travels from one airport to the next and someone they either know or encounter during their travels then begets the next chapter. Although short in its entirety and in every chapter, this book packed so much emotion and meaning into every word.
I loved this concept because I love a window into anyone's life. It's part of why I enjoy thrift stores and garage sales and people watching so much. Each of the twelve windows I got to peak through in this book, each brief moment with each character that I got to savor, was so indicative of who these people are, where they've been and where they're headed. The interconnectivity of it was a beautiful reminder of humanity. I particularly loved that the story ended where it began. It really emphasized how small this big world can be and how closely intertwined so many lives are without us realizing it. This review will remain short (by my standards), like the book it is about, because not much needs to be said to convey how much I enjoyed this. I will be adding this to my personal collection and will return to it many times over the years, and intend to give it as a gift in the future as well. It's just phenomenal.