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A review by bentohbox
Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar
4.0
4.25 / 5
I feel slightly guilty giving this anything less than 5 stars, but I must admit that Akhtar's "this is important, but I'll get to that later" style of foreshadowing did get to me throughout the book. Also, maybe it's my personal squeamishness but I tend to not enjoy overly sexual references in literature, even though it's really not very much in this book (so don't be offput by that please). I think primarily it's the conquest narratives and general contexts of those topics that really get to me, but ignore the psychoanalysis.
That out of the way, this was otherwise a treasure to read. Akhtar is a skilled writer (clearly), and the interwoven narratives along class, gender, race, intergenerational divides, and belonging were crafted well throughout the book. Coming from a South Asian and Muslim perspective, I found the conflicts and challenges interesting both along the intersections and divergences with my own experiences and readings of other authors falling into the vast Asian diaspora. This book took a great number of twists and turns along the axes of power, identity, parenthood, and belonging to drive the narrator forward through a slew of All-American (read: ironic, nonwhite) experiences that challenge you to consider your own opinions, perspectives, and beliefs. For that alone, I think it's a book worth recommending for the challenge that accompanies critical writing. For the stories, the development of deep, complex characters evocative of the complexities we manage each day, I know it's a book worth recommending.
Ultimately, I found myself wondering, in cliché fashion, what and whose homeland, and which and whose elegies? These are questions we all ought to ask ourselves more often.
I feel slightly guilty giving this anything less than 5 stars, but I must admit that Akhtar's "this is important, but I'll get to that later" style of foreshadowing did get to me throughout the book. Also, maybe it's my personal squeamishness but I tend to not enjoy overly sexual references in literature, even though it's really not very much in this book (so don't be offput by that please). I think primarily it's the conquest narratives and general contexts of those topics that really get to me, but ignore the psychoanalysis.
That out of the way, this was otherwise a treasure to read. Akhtar is a skilled writer (clearly), and the interwoven narratives along class, gender, race, intergenerational divides, and belonging were crafted well throughout the book. Coming from a South Asian and Muslim perspective, I found the conflicts and challenges interesting both along the intersections and divergences with my own experiences and readings of other authors falling into the vast Asian diaspora. This book took a great number of twists and turns along the axes of power, identity, parenthood, and belonging to drive the narrator forward through a slew of All-American (read: ironic, nonwhite) experiences that challenge you to consider your own opinions, perspectives, and beliefs. For that alone, I think it's a book worth recommending for the challenge that accompanies critical writing. For the stories, the development of deep, complex characters evocative of the complexities we manage each day, I know it's a book worth recommending.
Ultimately, I found myself wondering, in cliché fashion, what and whose homeland, and which and whose elegies? These are questions we all ought to ask ourselves more often.