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paperdavid's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.75
bookforte's review
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
eunicek82's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
5.0
This was a fantastic story collection about the Syrian and Syrian-American experience. There was such a wide range of stories in both tone and structure. This felt like a cohesive collection yet each story was very unique. The audio narration was expertly done, but I recommend also having a print copy for some of the visual elements she includes. I highly recommend this to everyone, even people who don’t normally read story collections.
hopewilkins's review
4.0
I classically love reading short stories and this book was no different! The author, Dima Alzayat, seems super dynamic as her style changes with each story. I preferred some over others, with Alligator, Summer of the Shark, and Once We Were Syrians as my favorites. Alligator was particularly different from the others as Dima used mixed media to showcase different historical accounts of American injustices and violence over time.
This will likely be a reread for me in the future, for fun and also because there is so much to absorb within these stories that I'm sure I missed some things the first time around. Interested to read more from Dima Alzayat in the future!
Quotes of interest:
"After five, ten, fifteen years on your head, they become invisible when they reach the carpet beneath your feet. What else do you shed unaware?"
"I remember wishing that something big would happen, like a tornado or an earthquake, just so it would be bigger than what was happening then."
"... she looked out of the window and imagined someone like her, or actually her on a previous day ..."
"She yearned to reach into the memory of that room and pluck from it the young woman, to show her there were many ways to live a life, that many had not been taught to her, that she had been set down upon a path designed to ensnare her while keeping her reaching for an apex, a triumph of some kind, which would never come, and that this was by plan, not chance."
"Yes, I bear it, this burden, sometimes high above my head like the burlap sack of a traveler and at other times low in my lungs like a tumor, but it was born as east as I was."
"Hanging on to land that didn't hang on to you."
"... she repeats over and over, and something about how she says it, the way each word climbs over the one before, reaching for a peak, sounds like a sinister guarantee of a void on the other side."
"That is what I called her. I no longer had my name but I was Syrian and I was better. Do you understand? I did not draw the line but all my life I followed it."
"A lot of research has been done on what refugees can cost a country and how much they can also benefit a country. In my opinion, this research is strange because when a person is born, we don't add up what they cost or how much money they'll make later in life."
This will likely be a reread for me in the future, for fun and also because there is so much to absorb within these stories that I'm sure I missed some things the first time around. Interested to read more from Dima Alzayat in the future!
Quotes of interest:
"After five, ten, fifteen years on your head, they become invisible when they reach the carpet beneath your feet. What else do you shed unaware?"
"I remember wishing that something big would happen, like a tornado or an earthquake, just so it would be bigger than what was happening then."
"... she looked out of the window and imagined someone like her, or actually her on a previous day ..."
"She yearned to reach into the memory of that room and pluck from it the young woman, to show her there were many ways to live a life, that many had not been taught to her, that she had been set down upon a path designed to ensnare her while keeping her reaching for an apex, a triumph of some kind, which would never come, and that this was by plan, not chance."
"Yes, I bear it, this burden, sometimes high above my head like the burlap sack of a traveler and at other times low in my lungs like a tumor, but it was born as east as I was."
"Hanging on to land that didn't hang on to you."
"... she repeats over and over, and something about how she says it, the way each word climbs over the one before, reaching for a peak, sounds like a sinister guarantee of a void on the other side."
"That is what I called her. I no longer had my name but I was Syrian and I was better. Do you understand? I did not draw the line but all my life I followed it."
"A lot of research has been done on what refugees can cost a country and how much they can also benefit a country. In my opinion, this research is strange because when a person is born, we don't add up what they cost or how much money they'll make later in life."
juliebcooper's review against another edition
4.0
This set of short stories is a great example of why I really enjoy the genre. The varying Arab and Arab American perspectives were all unique yet tied together so well as a collection. I will definitely look out for this author and read more of her work.
lilanye's review
4.0
I really loved this collection of stories. Each of these short stories are so powerful, each of them a unique piece of their own world. I enjoyed how the prose and the genre seemed fluid in these stories: Alzayat explores beautifully what language can do and build in words. Every story is world of its own, with its own history, moment in time, and so full of life. It never fails to amaze me, how a good short story author can make you feel with the characters in such a brief moment; I felt wronged and angry with Lina, frustrated with Girl, ached for Ralph.
I especially enjoyed the title story Alligator and the exciting way it was narrated, but honestly all of the stories were very strong. It was a slow read for me only because after each story I needed time to recollect myself, as the individual stories were so complete and I was so invested, it was as though starting altogether a new book with every story. This is definitely a collection to read and to re-visit.
I especially enjoyed the title story Alligator and the exciting way it was narrated, but honestly all of the stories were very strong. It was a slow read for me only because after each story I needed time to recollect myself, as the individual stories were so complete and I was so invested, it was as though starting altogether a new book with every story. This is definitely a collection to read and to re-visit.
annetjeberg's review
4.0
Great collection of short stories, that were very different, but very impactful in their own way. Loved that the writing style between the stories differed.
Looking forward to reading more by this author
Looking forward to reading more by this author
zellm's review
4.0
Such an interesting and compelling collection of stories. Alzayat writes in such a unique style, and her talent is evident here. Some of the stories hit me harder than others, but all of them were at least good. I really enjoyed the statements made here, and the culture that is woven through it all.
savvylit's review
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The connecting thread throughout the stories in Alligator is one of disconnection. Whether disconnected by grief, gender, or outsider status, each character in this collection is singular and affecting. Ultimately, the most powerful of all these stories is the titular one, "Alligator." In it, Alzayat mixes form, featuring newspaper clippings and first-person perspectives from multiple members of the same grieving family. As the story progresses, the racial tensions of rural Florida in the mid-20th century gradually reveal themselves with stark and disturbing clarity. In the aftermath of a lynching, the characters of Alligator are forced to reckon with their loss.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Murder, Death, War, Racism, Grief, and Xenophobia