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A review by adam613
An Island by Karen Jennings
4.0
4.5 stars
"It would continue, this relentless ebb and flow, the sea bringing what it chose. Let it come."
Samuel is a man haunted by his memories of the colonization of his homeland. Told in alternating timelines between past and present, we come to see how Samuel has become the man he is today living in isolation on an island off the coast from his homeland. That is until one day, a man washes up on the shore which stirs up all sorts of tension over their four days together on the island.
"He felt the answers rise up in his chest. These memories, these memories, hunting him down, taking possession of him. These memories and a word now, just a word remembered, that moved inside him, sat on his tongue, waiting there, until he spoke it out loud."
Haunting, mysterious and claustrophobic, An Island is a well-written book filled with strain between Samuel's past and present. Samuel is a conflicted and confused individual who has been traumatized by his experiences in his country from the days of his youth. Now as an older man, he is still baffled and attempting to reconcile his past with his current state.
"This is the land. I have tasted it. It is in my blood. It is my body and my body is it. I vow to the land without fear. If I die then I will return to the land and be born again. I vow with blood and with fire, for the land is mine and I am the land."
With logical and coherent transitions of timelines, Karen Jennings has composed a stirring and sensational book where Samuel is revealed as a sympathetic and relatable protagonist. The theme of aging and how we get there is a prominent and relatable theme in An Island. The use of flashbacks and alternating timelines helped to explore more aspects of colonization and identity. While exploring ideas of war, colonization, environment and trauma, Karen Jennings' An Island has written one of my favourite books of the year.
"It would continue, this relentless ebb and flow, the sea bringing what it chose. Let it come."
Samuel is a man haunted by his memories of the colonization of his homeland. Told in alternating timelines between past and present, we come to see how Samuel has become the man he is today living in isolation on an island off the coast from his homeland. That is until one day, a man washes up on the shore which stirs up all sorts of tension over their four days together on the island.
"He felt the answers rise up in his chest. These memories, these memories, hunting him down, taking possession of him. These memories and a word now, just a word remembered, that moved inside him, sat on his tongue, waiting there, until he spoke it out loud."
Haunting, mysterious and claustrophobic, An Island is a well-written book filled with strain between Samuel's past and present. Samuel is a conflicted and confused individual who has been traumatized by his experiences in his country from the days of his youth. Now as an older man, he is still baffled and attempting to reconcile his past with his current state.
"This is the land. I have tasted it. It is in my blood. It is my body and my body is it. I vow to the land without fear. If I die then I will return to the land and be born again. I vow with blood and with fire, for the land is mine and I am the land."
With logical and coherent transitions of timelines, Karen Jennings has composed a stirring and sensational book where Samuel is revealed as a sympathetic and relatable protagonist. The theme of aging and how we get there is a prominent and relatable theme in An Island. The use of flashbacks and alternating timelines helped to explore more aspects of colonization and identity. While exploring ideas of war, colonization, environment and trauma, Karen Jennings' An Island has written one of my favourite books of the year.