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elwin_rej's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
balfies's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
A follow up to one of my favourite reads of the year, The Lebs, Ahmad explores how Alamite Muslim customs around love and marriage take a psychological and physiological toll. A minority within a minority within a minority, Bani Adam's struggles to become himself are amplified within a failed Alamite marriage, and his emotional turmoil sizzles on the page.
I thought The Lebs was stronger and slightly more sophisticated in execution, but Ahmad remains a very talented writer who makes writing character look deceptively easy. Also, yet another book with a lot of the action based in Glebe - very weird when the characters walked the cafe I was reading in.
I thought The Lebs was stronger and slightly more sophisticated in execution, but Ahmad remains a very talented writer who makes writing character look deceptively easy. Also, yet another book with a lot of the action based in Glebe - very weird when the characters walked the cafe I was reading in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Domestic abuse, and Islamophobia
libraryhauntinglesbian's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
I was sent a free copy of this book by Sweatshop, but this is a completely honest review.
This was an absolutely heartbreaking book. Every character in this book was so flawed and complex, but you always understood their motivations for acting the way they did, and it’s so bittersweet to read. Despite being fictional, this book taught me so much about the cultural practices and dynamics of different Muslim communities. I loved reading a book that was set so close to where I live and grew up, but that also explores a cultural perspective I’ve never experienced.
This was an absolutely heartbreaking book. Every character in this book was so flawed and complex, but you always understood their motivations for acting the way they did, and it’s so bittersweet to read. Despite being fictional, this book taught me so much about the cultural practices and dynamics of different Muslim communities. I loved reading a book that was set so close to where I live and grew up, but that also explores a cultural perspective I’ve never experienced.
booksbecreads's review
3.0
3.5
"Beautiful things spoil nothing"
An interesting glimpse into Western Sydney in the early 2000s, from some perspectives i expected and some I hadn't considered. I am not sure why the c word was used so often.
"Ink was my first love"
"Beautiful things spoil nothing"
An interesting glimpse into Western Sydney in the early 2000s, from some perspectives i expected and some I hadn't considered. I am not sure why the c word was used so often.
"Ink was my first love"
delena_mae's review
4.0
Such a delight to read as the author perfectly captures the tension between family, societal and personal desires
karabeavis's review
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.5
jouljet's review
challenging
funny
hopeful
informative
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
tasmanian_bibliophile's review
4.0
‘Rust is my blood. Stardust is my soul.’
This novel is presented as a story by Bani Adam to his son Kahlil. It is the story of how Bani, a young Australian Lebanese Muslim man fell found his place in the world, and the balance he found between traditional community expectations and his own aspirations.
The story unfolds in three sections:
All that was
All that is
All that will be.
We learn of Bani’s traditional upbringing, the expectation that he will marry within his own Alawite Muslim tribe, and work with his family. Bani is the first member of his family to achieve a tertiary education: a mixed blessing which attracts both ridicule and admiration.
And through this novel (I have not read Mr Ahmad’s other novels – yet) I am drawn into a world I am less familiar with inside Western Sydney. Bani wants the freedom to make his own choices, but his family see that as a rejection of all they hold dear. A series of matchmaking attempts follow as Bani’s family tries to find a wife from within the Alawite community. A brief but unsuccessful traditional marriage, which his wife agrees to because she sees it as a way of obtaining her own freedom, ends as neither of them can meet the expectations imposed. Bani tries to conform but cannot.
Who is Bani? Can he step outside his family’s expectations and beyond his own prejudices to find his own more comfortable place in the world? Can the young man in flared jeans achieve his objectives?
Bani falls in love with a woman he chose for himself, the woman who becomes Khalil’s mother, the woman we come to know gradually as the story unfolds. Both will need to compromise, as will their families.
‘With all due respect Kahlil, I know I was being harsh on her, but please don’t be too harsh on me: I am the other, and you are half the other and your mother is the other half of you.’
I finished this novel, wanting to reread it after I have read ‘The Tribe’ and ‘The Lebs’. This is not just a novel about a migrant experience, it is a novel that touches on difference and othering, on ‘Us’ and ‘Them’ but finishes with hope: ‘We’.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
This novel is presented as a story by Bani Adam to his son Kahlil. It is the story of how Bani, a young Australian Lebanese Muslim man fell found his place in the world, and the balance he found between traditional community expectations and his own aspirations.
The story unfolds in three sections:
All that was
All that is
All that will be.
We learn of Bani’s traditional upbringing, the expectation that he will marry within his own Alawite Muslim tribe, and work with his family. Bani is the first member of his family to achieve a tertiary education: a mixed blessing which attracts both ridicule and admiration.
And through this novel (I have not read Mr Ahmad’s other novels – yet) I am drawn into a world I am less familiar with inside Western Sydney. Bani wants the freedom to make his own choices, but his family see that as a rejection of all they hold dear. A series of matchmaking attempts follow as Bani’s family tries to find a wife from within the Alawite community. A brief but unsuccessful traditional marriage, which his wife agrees to because she sees it as a way of obtaining her own freedom, ends as neither of them can meet the expectations imposed. Bani tries to conform but cannot.
Who is Bani? Can he step outside his family’s expectations and beyond his own prejudices to find his own more comfortable place in the world? Can the young man in flared jeans achieve his objectives?
Bani falls in love with a woman he chose for himself, the woman who becomes Khalil’s mother, the woman we come to know gradually as the story unfolds. Both will need to compromise, as will their families.
‘With all due respect Kahlil, I know I was being harsh on her, but please don’t be too harsh on me: I am the other, and you are half the other and your mother is the other half of you.’
I finished this novel, wanting to reread it after I have read ‘The Tribe’ and ‘The Lebs’. This is not just a novel about a migrant experience, it is a novel that touches on difference and othering, on ‘Us’ and ‘Them’ but finishes with hope: ‘We’.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
astridandlouise's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.5
curatoriallyyours's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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? Yes
4.0
This was such a western Sydney story in the best way! The parts I loved the most were the beautiful, poetic ways Bani spoke about and to his son. I also think the author managed the tension well between first and second generations in migrant families - the pull to be both in the culture of the country you grew up in (Australia, in this case) while honouring and continuing the culture of your migrant parents, especially when there is an educational disparity. This book does not shy away from addressing racism in both obvious and subtle forms. I think it also addresses the complexity of the lives of characters who might come across as two-dimensional to others due to bravado. One thing I found difficult to read were the casual racist epithets used to describe both Lebanese and other migrant communities - most of the time being said by the main character. There is also a whole lot of swearing in this book so if that’s not your thing this may not be the book for you! Without giving too much away, I was also unhappy with the resolution for the character of Fatima. All in all this book was a compelling read and I enjoyed it.