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lorikleininak 's review for:
There Are Rivers in the Sky
by Elif Shafak
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I can't overstate how excited I was to read "There Are Rivers in the Sky." It did not disappoint.
Throughout the book, you follow three timelines: Arthur, King of the Sewers and Slums in the 1800s, Narin, nine years old on the cusp of baptism in 2014, and Zaleekhah, an accomplished hydrologist, living in a houseboat on the Thames in London in 2018. Their lives are connected, and the author does a magnificent job of leading you to those connections.
This book is deeply rich in culture - from ancient Mesopotamia to modern day Iraq. It is reminiscent of "The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese in the span of characters across generations and has the same outstanding writing as the author's last book, "The Island of Missing Trees."
This novel is also deeply researched, and the "Note to the Reader" section at the back of the book is a treasure trove of additional information and a testimony to the effort the author put in to bring us such a sweeping story. She writes, "The research process for this novel has been intense, immense, and interdisciplinary. I loved reading a diverse range of books and academic articles, from global environmental crisis and conservation hydrology to Ancient Akkadian funeral and libation rites to the ethnomedicinal plants of Mesopotamia." Don't let the headiness of this statement give you pause - this novel is very accessible and equally profound. I highly recommend.
Throughout the book, you follow three timelines: Arthur, King of the Sewers and Slums in the 1800s, Narin, nine years old on the cusp of baptism in 2014, and Zaleekhah, an accomplished hydrologist, living in a houseboat on the Thames in London in 2018. Their lives are connected, and the author does a magnificent job of leading you to those connections.
This book is deeply rich in culture - from ancient Mesopotamia to modern day Iraq. It is reminiscent of "The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese in the span of characters across generations and has the same outstanding writing as the author's last book, "The Island of Missing Trees."
This novel is also deeply researched, and the "Note to the Reader" section at the back of the book is a treasure trove of additional information and a testimony to the effort the author put in to bring us such a sweeping story. She writes, "The research process for this novel has been intense, immense, and interdisciplinary. I loved reading a diverse range of books and academic articles, from global environmental crisis and conservation hydrology to Ancient Akkadian funeral and libation rites to the ethnomedicinal plants of Mesopotamia." Don't let the headiness of this statement give you pause - this novel is very accessible and equally profound. I highly recommend.