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breanne_barente 's review for:
The Map of Salt and Stars
by Zeyn Joukhadar
This is a rich and intense story, but it had the potential to be so much better.
I liked the story of Rawiya and the mapmaker. However, Nour's story in the modern day felt like it lacked depth. The characters felt like archetypes who got little chance for development: the stressed but loving mother, the father-figure, the always-kind-and-optimistic-and-faithful sister who never once whines or shows she has endured trauma, the bratty sister (who actually does get some character growth)... And Nour. At times she has the innocence of an 8 year old but the odd wisdom of an old woman. It was jarring and felt hard to get a grasp on her actual age (which is 12).
Finally, Nour's narration was so preachy, it took me out of the narrative. "My whole life, Mama and Baba celebrated two religions' worth of holidays--Christmas, Eid-al-Fitr, Easter. It used to make me wonder whether the most important things we see in God are really in each other." "Huda lets out her air. 'You choose what defines you. Being a refugee doesn't have to.'" Are all these children Proverb-a-Day calendars? Insights are great, but it feels condescending to the reader when the narrator/author has to explicitly point out these insightful theses every other page instead of trusting the reader to make their own conclusions (both those quotes are from the same page. It happens a lot). The 'everyone always speaks with deeply insightful wisdom' feels so unrealistic. I wanted more superficial, realistic conversations between the characters.
I did like, however, the fresh and creative writing. The author's metaphors and descriptions feel new and creative and convey great imagery. Further, Nour has synesthesia, so we get a lot of descriptions in the form of vivid colors, and it felt so new and refreshing.
I know this author has so much potential, because the preachy nature of her writing doesn't show up in Rawiya's story. I would read another book by her, but I hope she trusts her readers more next time to draw their own conclusions instead of having to slap us over the head with her main characters wondering about how God is in the little things *every other page.*
I liked the story of Rawiya and the mapmaker. However, Nour's story in the modern day felt like it lacked depth. The characters felt like archetypes who got little chance for development: the stressed but loving mother, the father-figure, the always-kind-and-optimistic-and-faithful sister who never once whines or shows she has endured trauma, the bratty sister (who actually does get some character growth)... And Nour. At times she has the innocence of an 8 year old but the odd wisdom of an old woman. It was jarring and felt hard to get a grasp on her actual age (which is 12).
Finally, Nour's narration was so preachy, it took me out of the narrative. "My whole life, Mama and Baba celebrated two religions' worth of holidays--Christmas, Eid-al-Fitr, Easter. It used to make me wonder whether the most important things we see in God are really in each other." "Huda lets out her air. 'You choose what defines you. Being a refugee doesn't have to.'" Are all these children Proverb-a-Day calendars? Insights are great, but it feels condescending to the reader when the narrator/author has to explicitly point out these insightful theses every other page instead of trusting the reader to make their own conclusions (both those quotes are from the same page. It happens a lot). The 'everyone always speaks with deeply insightful wisdom' feels so unrealistic. I wanted more superficial, realistic conversations between the characters.
I did like, however, the fresh and creative writing. The author's metaphors and descriptions feel new and creative and convey great imagery. Further, Nour has synesthesia, so we get a lot of descriptions in the form of vivid colors, and it felt so new and refreshing.
I know this author has so much potential, because the preachy nature of her writing doesn't show up in Rawiya's story. I would read another book by her, but I hope she trusts her readers more next time to draw their own conclusions instead of having to slap us over the head with her main characters wondering about how God is in the little things *every other page.*