Scan barcode
A review by sofia_reading
Burnt Shadows by Kamila Shamsie
5.0
Just finished this book for book club. I've had so much on recently so it took me longer to get through than is ideal, but even so with all the breaks, this books really impactful.
Reading the blurb I wondered if it was setting itself up for a bit of a defeat; how could Shamsie possibly cover Nagasaki, partition of India, 9/11, and the Afghan wars in a single story?!? But she does, and rather masterfully at that. It's one of those books I honestly think should be compulsory reading in schools, for all the perspectives and humanisation it offers in a world where dehumanising and othering is all too increasingly becoming a terrifying norm.
Reading the blurb I wondered if it was setting itself up for a bit of a defeat; how could Shamsie possibly cover Nagasaki, partition of India, 9/11, and the Afghan wars in a single story?!? But she does, and rather masterfully at that. It's one of those books I honestly think should be compulsory reading in schools, for all the perspectives and humanisation it offers in a world where dehumanising and othering is all too increasingly becoming a terrifying norm.