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A review by colinlusk
The Submission by Amy Waldman
4.0
This is a great conceit, well executed. The aftermath of 9/11 is reimagined with America plunged into a dilemma by a jury's choice of a Muslim architect to design the memorial. The understandable* misgivings of the victims' families spread outward and are soon blown up into open mistrust, hostility and eventually open racism by the misjudged actions of those involved and the cynical manipulations of the media and politicians.
The book it most reminded me of was Bonfire of the Vanities, another New York novel about racial tension and competing interest groups, and it has some of the same flaws, like the fact that it's characters seem to be hand-picked to exemplify particular types in the society. As a result, it's a little contrived, but that's not to say it's a bad book, by any means. I especially like the ending, which was all the more moving for being so unexpected.
*I considered leaving this word out because I think I'm supposed to look down on their small-mindedness or something, but I find it easy to imagine them being unhappy on a gut level in that position, no matter what their rational selves might think, especially when the designer himself is such a spikey, insensitive dick.
The book it most reminded me of was Bonfire of the Vanities, another New York novel about racial tension and competing interest groups, and it has some of the same flaws, like the fact that it's characters seem to be hand-picked to exemplify particular types in the society. As a result, it's a little contrived, but that's not to say it's a bad book, by any means. I especially like the ending, which was all the more moving for being so unexpected.
*I considered leaving this word out because I think I'm supposed to look down on their small-mindedness or something, but I find it easy to imagine them being unhappy on a gut level in that position, no matter what their rational selves might think, especially when the designer himself is such a spikey, insensitive dick.