Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - The Last White Man

I thought this book was really interesting, I appreciated the look into white folks' fear of losing our privilege. The way it was handled felt really true to life. I read almost the whole book in one sitting, it was engrossing and I enjoyed the read.
I would have wanted to have a character who didn't turn, who was always dark, and know what their perspective was in this situation.

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nfoutty's review

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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criticalgayze's review

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challenging hopeful medium-paced

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

3.5

Like with Exit West, this book poses some interesting questions. These are two that really stuck with me:

What gives a person their "self?"
Does a change in one's "self," especially a drastic change, make them more aware of who they are or less aware?

While Hamid is amazing at positing deep moral questions, unlike with Exit West, I don't think this book goes quite far enough in addressing them or their repercussions in the specific world he's laid out here. It is sad to think, but I don't think the violence of the moment likely escalates to its logical end point, and I think the ledge is come down from rather too quickly and smoothly.

We also get a rather random glimpse at a possible aware external narrator who only presents themselves once, which makes it feel like an original structure idea that forgot to be fully excised from the final edit.

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thenonmouse's review

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challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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sarahmae531's review

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challenging emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.5

A very interesting topic, beautifully written.

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deedireads's review

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challenging dark hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

The Last White Man is another stunner from Mohsin Hamid and his heartbreaking commas. It’s a quick read with lots of layers that kept me thinking long after I’d closed it.

For you if: You like novels that use magical realism as a metaphor.

FULL REVIEW:

First, thank you to Riverhead for the advanced copy of this book. Exit West is an all-time favorite, and The Last White Man was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I’m happy to report that it is excellent, with lots of layers that kept me thinking long after I’d closed it.

This is a quick read (under 200 pages), but so resonant. The story is about a gym instructor named Anders who, in a reimagined-Kafka moment, wakes up one day to find out that his skin has gone from white to brown. He’s not alone; more and more people’s skin changes until there’s (briefly) only one white man left. We also see a lot of Oona, a white yoga instructor who’s casually sleeping with Anders. Both of their parents factor heavily into the story as well, in ways I’ll let you discover for yourself.

The book is, of course, an exploration of whiteness from within, as Hamid has said in previous interviews. But in the letter printed at the front of my advanced reader’s copy, he also talks about how he’d been “white enough” (PhD, etc) to enjoy a certain level of privilege in the US — until 9/11, at which point only his skin mattered. I found that holding both of these approaches to the story in my mind as I read (what would happen if white people lost their whiteness, vs the metaphor of a non-white person grappling with a lost illusion of inclusion) made the reading experience even richer, with even more reflection.

Some of the other things I’m still contemplating about this book include the identity of the last white man and how his time as such ended, and the exploration of different kinds of deaths and how they impact loved ones.

And, of course, I fell hard (again) for Hamid’s signature long, beautiful sentences — aside from the opening line, I’m not sure there’s a single paragraph that isn’t just one single sentence. This won’t be for everyone, but I love their momentum, how they pull you along and crest into a wave that breaks on the paragraph’s last few words, again and again and again for a whole book.

Oh, there’s so much more I could say if all of you had already read it. I think we’ll be seeing this on the Booker Prize longlist next week.

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