lailasemeda's reviews
110 reviews

Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel García Márquez

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Animal Farm by George Orwell

adventurous challenging dark reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It took me a lot to finally get this book and read it. But I regret not reading it years ago when I was younger, it would have helped a lot in understanding the world. 
George Orwell brilliantly mirrors real-world struggles as the animals  of Manor Farm revolt against oppression, forming their own ideology, constitution, and even an army. 
With the leadership of Snowball the pig who convinced other animals that pigs are superior to them and more intelligent to lead this new democratic society who was overthrown later by Napoleon the tyrant pig using his trained militias to replace him as a leader while spreading false facts through Squealer who represents the media in our real world to better control the animals till the events escalated into unbelievable occurrences.
This is a must-read novella for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of our world.

Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A very well written romantic novel with a huge plot twist that turns the events upside down and put the fresh love between Morgan and Colby to a big test; proving that love and pain are two sides of the same coin.

عهد دميانة by أسامة عبد الرؤف الشاذلي

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

"فى أوقات المِحن تهتز القيَمُ أمامَ موجات اليأس، ثم تأتى الأفعال الصالحة من البعض كطوق نجاةٍ ليحمي تلك القيَم من الغرق."

"وخطر لى أن المصريين نسوا التحنيط حينما نسوا أن هناك حياةً آخرة، ورضوا بحياة واحدة، وكأنهم كفروا بالخلود، وآمنوا بالعفن!"

رواية جميلة تدور احداثها فى أواخر عصر الفاطميين فى مصر عن يوسف بن صدقة ورحلته الروحانية بين الأديان وبحثه عن الله والخير.

ما اعجبنى أن الانتقال فيها بين الشخصيات والسنين سلس جدا. وسرد القصة من خلال كل شخصية مختلفة ثم ربط علاقة الشخصيات ببعضها وسط الاحداث كان اكثر من رائع.

The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba by Chanel Cleeton

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

إذما by محمد صادق

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

True At First Light by Ernest Hemingway

adventurous informative mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

“I’d rather live in a place and have an actual part in the life of it than just see new strange things.”

This book was reworked by Ernest Hemingway’s son Patrick and published after his death in the mid-1990’s.

The book title is inspired by Mary Hemingway’s fourth wife’s poem mentioning; “In Africa a thing is true at first light and a lie by noon and you have no more respect for it than for the lovely, perfect weed-fringed lake you see across the sun-baked salt plain. You have walked across that plain in the morning and you know that no such lake is there.”

The book is mix between a memoir and fiction about Ernest and Mary Hemingway’s trip to Africa, about their relationship how he loved his wife and how they disagreed together, also about how keen he was to help Mary hunt the majestic lion she wanted to hunt down by herself.

When you read this book you will feel like reading someone’s journal which is very personal and exciting at times, however would be rather boring at other times as it lacks the art of good storytelling.

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

“A friend said she believes that in reading stories set in the Second World War, people like to ask themselves what they would have done. I think a better question to ask is what can we do now to ensure that libraries and learning are accessible to all and that we treat people with dignity and compassion.”

“We could never know our loved ones, and they would never know us. It was heartbreaking, it was true.”

A novel based on true events and actual people from World War Two in Paris but with some alterations. 

It tells the story of the true humans “The Librarians” who kept the American Library in Paris open to serve all readers to pass the hardships of war, to give them hope for a better future and to not let anyone feel alone or isolated to the extent of smuggling books to Jews at a time they were arrested and sent to extermination camps.

The novel takes place between two timelines where the main character Odile was once a young librarian in Paris and the other after 44 years when she is a widow living alone in Montana in USA. Through her friendship with Lilly she reconciles with her past and becomes surrounded with her neighbors who filled her life once again.

الحجرات by شيرين سامي

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

فى رواية حجرات تتنقل الراوية بين حجرات الحياة المختلفة مثل حجرة المعيشة، حجرة النوم، حجرة الدكتور النفسى وحجرة العمل تحكى ما مرت به من معاناة فى زواجها التى ادت بها الى الطلاق بعد خمسة عشر سنة زواج.
توصف بشكل واقعى جدا كيف يقصر الرجل فى حق زوجته ويهينها ليوصلها لمرحلة الطلاق واخذها قرار هدم حياتها بعد استقرار سنين.
رواية جديدة توصف مشاعر المرأة من بُعد مختلف وتربط الاحداث بحجرات نمُر بها يومياً فى حياتنا.

The 5 Love Languages of Children: The Secret to Loving Children Effectively by Sophie Campbell, Gary Chapman

hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

Every parent should know what their child’s love language is.
In this busy and stressful life we have limited time with our children so it is important in that limited time we have with them to shower them with love in the way they most long to.
In this book you will learn about the 5 different love languages and how to know what your child’s love language is, how to discipline your child positively and how to regulate your child’s anger and deal with it properly.