Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Are you looking to buy Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel? Here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel. Check out the link below:

>> Click Here to See Compare Prices and Get the Best Offers

Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel ReviewI must say I had the wrong impression of this book from reading the product description. I was afraid this book was going to be something a bit tawdry and maybe even a little harlequinesque because the description focused quite a bit on the sex aspects of this book. Instead the book was a powerful look at people from different backgrounds coming into contact with vastly different personalities sometimes making connections and other times crashing into one another altering their lives forever. The sex in the book was integral to the plot and was anything but tawdry or gratuitous. Sex is a central aspect of all our lives and the author uses sex as a vehicle to expose greater truths about ourselves in intimate detail.
One thing that amazes me (although it really shouldn't) is how much I relate to some of the Egyptian characters in this novel that come from conservative religious backgrounds. Coming from a conservative southern Baptist background myself I find myself surprised to be relating with characters from a different religion and different cultures. For me this is simply more evidence that we are not anywhere near as different as we sometimes imagine we are.
The plot centers on Chicago University Histology department, and the author uses different narrative techniques to tell his characters stories. His transitions between characters is very fluid, and his use of the first person narrative with one character gives the book a deeper intimacy than the it would have had written solely in the third person. The transitions are what really moves the book forward and gives it a dramatic feel. The author chooses highly dramatic moments for his paragraph breaks and character transitions which leaves the reader wanting more. I had a hard time putting the book down at times because I wanted to find out what happened to one character or another. I really love when an author is able to employ this technique effectively which this author has done.
The author does an excellent job juxtaposing the old guard with the next generation as it comes up in the same world they once came up in. The old Egyptian emigrants stand in stark contrast to the idealism and optimism of the younger generation coming to school under them. Each character seems to represent immigrant experience in different ways. You have the one character who disowns his Egyptian roots completely (or so he thinks) to become fully "Americanized" and cast off the "backwardness" of Egyptian society. Then there are those who feel they have betrayed their country and live guilt riddled lives. These characters tend to focus the reader in the almost completely cyclical nature of our lives as the young Egyptians idealism forces them down much the same paths of those who came before them.
I really hate when people discuss the ending of books, but I am going to finish by saying a little something about the end. I am going to be vague so as not to ruin anything, but if you are like me then I would stop reading now. The way the author was leading the book towards its conclusion I was afraid I was going to have to stomach a marshmallow, cushy ending that would have disappointed me greatly. Instead the author has a fabulous ending I really enjoyed, and that's all I will say.
I picked up this book because I was looking for some books by authors from this part of the world, and this book did not disappoint at all. It was a fun, dramatic and quick read. The characters were all engaging and forced you to care and read on. The translation was excellent, and now I have an author I am going to go back and read his earlier stuff and anything he writes in the future. I highly recommend this book.Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel Overview

Want to learn more information about Chicago: A Modern Arabic Novel?

>> Click Here to See All Customer Reviews & Ratings Now