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De Niro's Game

3.67 of 5 stars 3.67 · rating details · 1,141 ratings · 160 reviews

There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. In Rawi Hage's unforgettable novel, winner of the 2008 IMPAC Prize, this famous quote by Camus becomes a touchstone for two young men caught in Lebanon's civil war. Bassam and George are childhood best friends who have grown to adulthood in war torn Beirut. Now they must choose their futures: to sta...more

Hardcover, 288 pages

Published April 12th 2006 by House of Anansi Press (first published 2006)

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Jun 27, 2010 Jennifer (aka EM) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Jennifer (aka EM) by: Christine Patten

Shelves: canlit

From the first pages, it is clear that Rawi Hage can write, that he can paint pictures with words.

Inside their houses, the impoverished women carefully, economically, dripped water from red plastic buckets over their brown skins in ancient Turkish bathtubs, washing away the dust, the smells, the baklava-thin crust, the vicious morning gossip over tiny coffee cups, the poverty of their husbands, the sweat under their unshaven armpits. They washed like meticulous Christian cats that lick their pa...more From the first pages, it is clear that Rawi Hage can write, that he can paint pictures with words.

Inside their houses, the impoverished women carefully, economically, dripped water from red plastic buckets over their brown skins in ancient Turkish bathtubs, washing away the dust, the smells, the baklava-thin crust, the vicious morning gossip over tiny coffee cups, the poverty of their husbands, the sweat under their unshaven armpits. They washed like meticulous Christian cats that lick their paws under small European car engines that leak corporate oil extracted by exploited Nigerian workers from underneath the earth where devils roam, and worms gnaw on the roots of dead trees that are suffocated by factory fumes and the greedy breath of white-skinned engineers. Those lazy cats lingered under unwashed cars, watching the passing of Italian shoes, painted nails, colourful and torn-out cuffs, pointy high heels, plastic flippers, stomping naked feet, and delicious exposed ankles that thick hands would bind, release, and slip higher to reach a flow of warm fluid that carefully, generously turned into a modest flood smelling of eel, red fish, and rosewater.

This is page 14, the fourth page of the novel, and in the first of what will be many images like this, Hage sets up the recurring themes set amidst the blood and bombs, sex and guns and contraband whiskey, death, dirt, dust and violence of Beirut circa 1982. East (Christian) Beirut, specifically, although loyalties are complex and difficult to grasp, as fluid and circular as Hage's imagery.

This is a chaotic, hallucinatory, cinematic, nihilistic, sometimes literal, sometimes figurative, sometimes both nightmare world seen through the eyes of the traumatized and testosterone-, nicotine-, hash- and coffee-fuelled Bassam who dreams only of escape.

When I believed that all I was going to be given were these beautiful and lyrical images describing the ugliest of scenes, wonderful as they are, I started to fade, but on p. 101 (precisely) a plot twist occurred, and several more after that.

Thereafter, Hage's novel wove character and plot into the tapestry (whereas prior to, Bassam's L'Etranger-like emotional detachment made it difficult to connect with him), and the imagery came to embroider his emotional underpinnings and mental state. A scene of torture is particularly effective, gut-wrenching and frightening, when described with this type of lyricism.

De Niro's Game reads in part like a spy novel, and part like Hemingway-meets-Burroughs-meets-Camus. It's not on many of my GR friends' lists, but (not only to plug a Montreal-by-way-of-Lebanon author), it should be.

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Previous comment:
I thought this book, based on title and cover art, was a spy thriller--not my cup of tea. Instead, I find out it's an existential exploration, with allusions to Camus and Sartre, of life in war-torn Beirut. The title is taken from the game of Russian roulette (à la DeNiro in the Deerhunter) that becomes popular among those who are struggling to survive there. Much lauded among the CanLit crowd, including Quill & Quire (review here).

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Mar 31, 2008 Erinn rated it 4 of 5 stars

I picked this up from the "new/7 day checkout" section at the front of the library... a favorite place to pick out books on a whim. I am glad I did.

I was very impressed by the poetic prose, the dreamlike quality of the characters experiences. The book is about 2 young men in Lebanon, and the twisted life that they try to live while running under the bombs. I really felt how a person could become quite numb living in such an unreal (or perhaps all too real) situation. It was darkly beautiful and...more

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May 20, 2012 Nojood Alsudairi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

سحقت الحرب اللبنانية حتى النفس الإنسانية في الشباب. فترة من تاريخ لبنان ربما لو قرانا عنها عدد من الكتب لما فهمناها كما جاءت في هذه الرواية لبساطة الطرح. كم تعاطفت مع شخصية جلال لضياع هويتها بين جاسوس وسكرتيرة. لم تنجُ الفتاة الشرعية أيضا من نفس ازمة الهوية التي عانى منها أخاها وإن كانت ردة فعلها تختلف. لولا الكثير من الصور غير المرغوبة لكانت الرواية القريبة للكمال من وجهة نظري.
شكرا شيماء على إصرارك على قراءتي للرواية وإهداؤها لي.
أوصلني هذا الكتاب لرقم 1000

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Nov 04, 2012 Erin rated it 4 of 5 stars

I checked out Rawi Hage’s De Niro’s Game from the library because I had spent an hour or so checking out “best book lists” in an effort to overcome my recent spate of terrible reads. It showed up on several lists, and without reading a plot summary, I decided I’d give it a try. I think from the title I expected that the book would be about a game show, or maybe the actor - Robert De Niro. Wrong!

The novel centers on the first person protagonist, Bassam, as he tries to escape Beirut during the Leb...more I checked out Rawi Hage’s De Niro’s Game from the library because I had spent an hour or so checking out “best book lists” in an effort to overcome my recent spate of terrible reads. It showed up on several lists, and without reading a plot summary, I decided I’d give it a try. I think from the title I expected that the book would be about a game show, or maybe the actor - Robert De Niro. Wrong!

The novel centers on the first person protagonist, Bassam, as he tries to escape Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War, and his best friend, George - who also goes by the name “De Niro” (one part of the title explained). The two begin the novel messing about with a casino - stealing money and what not - and so you might at first expect the titular “game” to be related to gambling. Not so! The game, as it turns out, De Niro’s game in The Deer Hunter: both Bassam and George literally and symbolically play Russian Roulette as the two try to navigate the politics of the Civil War and the psychology of having been raised as “hunters”.

I did enjoy the story, and I appreciated Bassam’s narrative voice - not an entirely reliable narrator, certainly not very sympathetic in his actions, and yet someone, I still cared about him and wanted him to be okay - but what I enjoyed most was the use of extended similes and metaphors. Scenes are described with one rich simile which is then compared to something else, and compared to something else, an on, until you’ve reached the end of a breathtaking sentence that really does wonderful work with the imagination and in conjuring the sensory and emotive registers of the scene (that sounds a bit like an ad for perfume, but I do mean it - the similes are mind-blowing, and not in a Tom Robbins “what does this have to do with anything” kind of way, but in a melding of all kinds of different experiences). The metaphors - hunting, dust, cannibalism, games, smoking, the moon - carry throughout the novel and interweave with one another to a degree where I found it difficult to be sure what one alluded to, or whether the whole point was a collapse of clear meaning. In any case: full points for narrative style.

If nothing else De Niro’s Game breaks the cycle of bad writing and reminds me that a good book can make you forget just about everything (including a heat wave of temperatures in the 40 degree Celcius range, a thesis that refuses to write itself) and if it doesn’t help you forget, it at least puts into perspective so-called “problems”.(less)

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Jun 23, 2011 Elizabeth Adams rated it 4 of 5 stars

Fellow Montrealer Rawi Hage's first novel, "De Niro's Game" is not a comfortable read, especially for those of us who had family and friends in Beirut during the Lebanese civil war, but I was riveted to the book from start to finish. Hage is a skillful and often poetic writer, especially when it comes to creating believable characters in the center of what is often an unbelievably horrible situation. You may not like them, but you won't forget them. His control of the action was complete, and hi...more Fellow Montrealer Rawi Hage's first novel, "De Niro's Game" is not a comfortable read, especially for those of us who had family and friends in Beirut during the Lebanese civil war, but I was riveted to the book from start to finish. Hage is a skillful and often poetic writer, especially when it comes to creating believable characters in the center of what is often an unbelievably horrible situation. You may not like them, but you won't forget them. His control of the action was complete, and his description of the psychological state of the protagonist was remarkably successful at bringing this reader -- in her North American apartment with reliable running water and electricity, undamaged plaster, and an intact family -- into the surreal claustrophobia of constant war, random death, interrogation, terror, and the shifting loyalty of friends, as well as the alienation of young people facing a mortally dangerous and completely uncertain future.

Readers who aren't familiar with the nuances of Middle Eastern politics may be shocked at what is revealed here, but I found its unflinching truth, seldom accurately reported in the media, most welcome.

Others may be distressed at the way relationships between the sexes are portrayed, but both from my own experience and as an editor, I felt that this view seemed accurate, coming from the narrator, and I thought Hage was courageous in writing the character of his protagonist as he did, knowing readers would assume he himself felt -- or even acted -- the same way. There was little sympathetic balance to this male point of view; I wished we had learned more about the lives and psyches of the two young women with whom he becomes involved, not to mention the mother, aunt, and stepmother whose behavior is criticized but not fully explained.

But the impact of "De Niro's Game" hinges, in fact, on the description of a lot of so-called "negative" behavior and the way the author simply lays it out as fact, for us to digest and deal with. The questions that remain - how would I have acted in his place? in her place? - are the source of both its lingering discomfort and its power.

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Dec 27, 2010 Carly rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book drew me with it's stark allusions to bombs, blood and things overseas, promising to be shocking just knowing the scenes are taking place in the east.

I begin to get bored with him - thinking 'what is this - he's overwriting this thing'. What is with this so many bombs falling, falling, falling . . . then the story started.

So many times I wanted to reach in there, grab him by the scruff of his shirt and remove him from the scene, put him in England, in France, Canada - somewhere sensib...more

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Oct 21, 2010 Imran K rated it 4 of 5 stars

De Niro’s Game Review
De Niro’s Game written by Rawi Hage is a thriller than draws the reader in and holds their interest throughout. Between the various bombings and drug related scenes the mood becomes darker and the main characters Bassam and George become more hostile .
The casual writing style and blunt language makes the reader feel like this is a re-telling of a story instead of a novel. It starts off with a short poetic verse then goes into the story, making the mood feel very grim from...more De Niro’s Game Review
De Niro’s Game written by Rawi Hage is a thriller than draws the reader in and holds their interest throughout. Between the various bombings and drug related scenes the mood becomes darker and the main characters Bassam and George become more hostile .
The casual writing style and blunt language makes the reader feel like this is a re-telling of a story instead of a novel. It starts off with a short poetic verse then goes into the story, making the mood feel very grim from the beginning.
A few pages into the book you become immersed in the heart of Beirut, with a poor family, a single mother trying to take care of her son, cooking for him until bombs start to fall. She goes into the shelter while her son, Bassam refuses to go into the shelter. We are then introduced to George, who is described in a short paragraph as a typical thug.
Rawi Hage had amazing descriptions of the surroundings in every scene, since he used to live in Beirut during the civil war. The sentences were never dragged on; every word had meaning to it and applied to the story, unlike other authors who tend to babble on about meaningless facts.
The militia generals were always very intrusive into people’s lives, capturing the feel of a civil war. The life of a thug in Beirut is very interesting, especially when compared to those in North America, there are many similarities but the way things are conducted are very different. This book is very interesting for people who live in first world countries since there are many things we cannot relate to and never think about, but Hage goes into such deep detail about the life there that you feel like you almost know the characters.
Even though De Niro’s Game is an amazing book, there are still some parts which were not very enjoyable. I found that the book starts off very slow some readers may need to be immersed from the start to read a book, others may have no problem with this. Hage brings you into the setting very quickly and immerses you into the middle of an exciting event but the reader doesn’t find anything substantial until almost halfway through. The story doesn’t start to unravel for a while, the beginning is mostly drawing the reader into the setting of the book.
Overall, I found that Rawi Hage has written an amazing action packed thriller that is definitely worth reading. His writing style, tone, language used and characters all compliment each other very nicely.
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Jun 11, 2010 Kendra rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own-it, favorites

Rawi Hage's use of language is superb. He successfully melds magical and wondrous metaphors and allusions into a taut, tightly-wound narrative that is brutal, blunt and tears away human artifice. Bassam is an ambivalent character; I didn't love or hate him, but I felt great pity and sadness for his character that had been defaced by the rigours of the prolonged war.

Many passages I read, and then had to immediately re-read. I love this one:

He pulled out a small bag, and we rolled oily hash into a...more

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Mar 12, 2010 Baselkaskas rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. BOOK REVIEW
De Niro's Game
by Rawi Hage
Real as it gets
Review by Basel Kaskas

De Niro's game is the debut novel of Canadian author Rawi Hage. Being form the Middle East myself and living there as a child I can truly relate to the plot. This violent lifestyle of two childhood friends takes off into a battle between life and death. One of the major reasons people and my family do immigrate to other countries is because of the danger that is there. Bassam and Gorge both try to escape the brutal war th...more BOOK REVIEW
De Niro's Game
by Rawi Hage
Real as it gets
Review by Basel Kaskas

De Niro's game is the debut novel of Canadian author Rawi Hage. Being form the Middle East myself and living there as a child I can truly relate to the plot. This violent lifestyle of two childhood friends takes off into a battle between life and death. One of the major reasons people and my family do immigrate to other countries is because of the danger that is there. Bassam and Gorge both try to escape the brutal war that is upon them. Bassam had always had the dream to escape to Rome and relive him and others from the war. Unfortunately his mother passes away. As she is laid down beside her husband Bassam ponders at his parents’ graves and notes: “Now still, two corpses devoured by slimy carnivore worms. They were at each other’s throats under the moist earth” (Hage 67).
Although this book is very violent the truth is brought alive through the words of Rawi Hage. As bassam tells the story when he notes “Ten thousand bombs had landed, and I was waiting for George” (Hage 1) Bassam recounts stories of their survival in the torn-up section of the city where he seeks revenge in the bombed-out streets. I can just picture the torn up streets and broken homes. Beirut is a beautiful city in the country of Lebanon and it is very unfortunate the damage that its beauty has been put threw. My only dislike of the novel is when the story takes off onto a new path when the setting is changed in Paris. But this novel is still very rich and pure when we follow the life of the survival of people under the attack.
This book was well written. Also considering that English is Rawi Hage’s Third language, Arabic and French being his first. DeNiro's Game won the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in the year 2008. This novel was very real to me and it must be to others knowing that Hage had served his time in the civil war in the 1980 before bringing the truth to his novel. I recommended this book to any reader out there. Whoever is looking to seek the truth about what occurs outside of our typical lives in other countries, grab this book as fast as you can. It may be sad and discouraging for anyone holding out hope for that part of the world but it’s as real as it gets.
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Nov 30, 2009 Jack rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. De Niro’s Game is a novel about adolescent brotherhood, and survival. We plunge into amazing setting, plot and writing style as we read.
The setting is composed of two major parts, the first sets us off into 1982 during the Lebanese civil war, where our main characters reside “in Beirut the heart of all the violence” (Hage 36). Our main characters live through the war as children and now as adults that slowly start to show there differences life, and Bassam’s view of Beirut turns dark and unforgi...more De Niro’s Game is a novel about adolescent brotherhood, and survival. We plunge into amazing setting, plot and writing style as we read.
The setting is composed of two major parts, the first sets us off into 1982 during the Lebanese civil war, where our main characters reside “in Beirut the heart of all the violence” (Hage 36). Our main characters live through the war as children and now as adults that slowly start to show there differences life, and Bassam’s view of Beirut turns dark and unforgiving as him and George separate. Bassam escapes from Beirut, and takes an old boat to Paris, where he is even more alone as he seeks a woman. When he leaves his morals, and views are left behind, and he is given a clean slate “Attempting to change my life for the better” (Hage 240). The clean slate Bassam is give he easily marks up, even though saying his live would change for the better, this proves that the setting had no effect on the characters and his old forgiven ways were not forgotten.
Plot of a story is the most important because not only must it be good, it is expected. Two brothers roam the streets of Beirut in attempt to discover and set their identities. As they live their life’s they plot to steal money from casinos that George works as security guard, they start to take different paths as George joins the military and Bassam strives to leave Beirut. When Bassam is used by George as his personal mailman the two finally see eye to eye and indirect confrontation develops; where George flirts with Bassam's girlfriend, he is constantly drunk, and he threatens him. The transition of when Bassam moves to Paris starts and he seems to have no trouble leaving his past behind, and this is where Hage work of the plot gets us to foreshadow and really start to understand the characters.
The writing style in De Niro’s Game, gets us to pity the characters and live the experience. Although Hage’s writing style seems to attract most readers by using devices that have nothing to do with the story and veer off topic, and imagery that hardly relates to the story. I also think in my opinion that the ending seemed rushed and there is a comparison used near the ending where Bassam reads “The Stranger” in his cheap hotel, which has little meaning and only proves him as a foreigner in Paris. The comparison also drifts us off topic and leads us to think why was thin included in the book?
The book although the ending has a great writing style, plot and interesting setting that is not to dark and would applies to most adolescence and adults.
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Mar 28, 2012 Sue Smith rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-in-2012, cbc-bookshelf

I don't know what to think about this book. Truthfully - for the most part - I found I was floundering with it. The subject was something I have no basis of experience with to judge it against, and that shouldn't really be a reason to completely pan a book on. But it's based on a reality that is in the here and now of people's lives and I'm woefully - and thankfully - out of such day to day gorilla life experiences. I know it exists, I know some people grow up with this now as a norm and it's al...more I don't know what to think about this book. Truthfully - for the most part - I found I was floundering with it. The subject was something I have no basis of experience with to judge it against, and that shouldn't really be a reason to completely pan a book on. But it's based on a reality that is in the here and now of people's lives and I'm woefully - and thankfully - out of such day to day gorilla life experiences. I know it exists, I know some people grow up with this now as a norm and it's all in a day's experiences for them, but for me this was more difficult to relate to than some of the science fiction or fantasy novels I've read. It's so out of my realm of experiences that I had a hard time really understanding it.

I also had a hard time with the jilted, broken way it was written. I understand it was to make everything seem more - what's the word here - fragmented and fragile. How things ... how life is just little bits of impressions of the things you see and remember. Unfortunately, I found that it just interfered with my understanding of the story. It was broken. I decided to read this as fast as I could so I wouldn't get lost in the the fragments. I have to say I was glad that I did - I'm quite sure if I was reading this casually, I would not have bothered finishing it. I wasn't captured by the imagery of the fragments, it just muddied the waters. It may have been described as poetry, but I didn't find it to be enlightening or lyrical. Just annoying.

I will give credit where credit is due though. As the book progressed, the imagery and disjointedness helped to explain his state of mind like nothing else could have and it made things very tense and 'other-worldly'. But it took a long way to get there and I fear that most people will have abandoned before it gets to that point.

Ultimately, this story is about how you deal with the cards that life hands you. And you don't always get a good hand to play. Nor do you get to pick the place where the game is played. There's always choices. The the best choices are usually the ones you make for yourself.

So think for yourself.(less)

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Oct 29, 2012 Ubik 2.0 rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Il gioco di De Niro

Rawi Hage è assimilabile a quella ormai folta schiera di autori mediorientali, emigrati (o costretti a farlo) in Usa o Europa (Khadra, Hosseini, Aslam, Matar, ecc) che hanno la peculiarità di coniugare un'esperienza diretta della vita, dei costumi, dei luoghi ove sono nati e hanno passato infanzia e giovinezza, con una prospettiva narrativa "esterna", spesso critica ancorchè a volte soffusa di malinconia e rimpianto, del mondo islamico delle sue antiche dolcezze e dei suoi re...more Il gioco di De Niro

Rawi Hage è assimilabile a quella ormai folta schiera di autori mediorientali, emigrati (o costretti a farlo) in Usa o Europa (Khadra, Hosseini, Aslam, Matar, ecc) che hanno la peculiarità di coniugare un'esperienza diretta della vita, dei costumi, dei luoghi ove sono nati e hanno passato infanzia e giovinezza, con una prospettiva narrativa "esterna", spesso critica ancorchè a volte soffusa di malinconia e rimpianto, del mondo islamico delle sue antiche dolcezze e dei suoi recenti orrori.

Di orrori si può parlare a pieno titolo per questo "Come la rabbia al vento", o quanto meno per la sue prime due parti, allorchè Hage, nato a Beirut, ci fa rivivere i terribili anni della guerra civile e della trasformazione di quella che era una delle perle del Medio Oriente in un cumulo di macerie, dove bande di musulmani e cristiani locali, di palestinesi, ebrei, siriani scorazzano senza tregua e dove soprattutto la pioggia continua di bombe è quasi un elemento della vita della città.

Su questo sfondo si svolge la vita difficile dei ragazzi di Beirut ed in particolare del narratore e dell'amico del cuore George, fra espedienti per rimediare danaro, bevute, fumate, esperienze sessuali, qualche lavoretto più o meno lecito, avventure il cui pathos è intensificato dal pericolo costante di morte violenta. L'arruolamento di George nelle milizie cristiane segna una cesura nella vicenda, motivando il soprannome di "De Niro" che gli viene attribuito a causa del "gioco" della roulette russa attuato dal personaggio de "Il cacciatore" (il titolo originale del libro "De Niro's Game").

Peccato che Rawi Hage abbia scelto di adottare un linguaggio barocco e a tratti estetizzante che mal si addice ad un contesto di carne, sangue e distruzione come quello in cui si svolge il racconto, con divagazioni che stridono con l'incombenza delle situazioni drammatiche e ridondanti rispetto all'aderenza alla realtà che gli altri autori sopra citati hanno invece perseguito...Ma peccato soprattutto che nella terza parte del libro, allorchè il protagonista riesce ad uscire dal Libano, la storia diventi un'operetta con personaggi inadeguati, in una lunghissima e noiosa parentesi parigina che lede irreversibilmente la coerenza del libro.(less)

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May 10, 2012 Myriam rated it 3 of 5 stars

I expected a lot from this book, but frankly I couldn't wait for it to end. It is well written, no doubt about that, and Hage has a unique way of conveying the voices of characters and the sequence of events which I found to be intriguing and compelling. However the story as a whole was somewhat lacking. There is an emptiness at times between the pages where I felt there should have been maybe a deeper rendition of the main character's thoughts. The story didn't fulfill my expectations and that...more

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Mar 11, 2013 Megan Howe rated it 4 of 5 stars

I picked this at random from the library shelf and was pretty amazed by it. Set in Beirut during the civil war, it's brutal but beautiful. A disturbing and desperate story of two young men, childhood best friends, in the midst of a war which I know very little about. Wonderful writing. Here's an example:
"Ten thousand bombs had fallen and I was waiting for death to come and scoop its daily share from a bowl of limbs and blood. I walked down the street under the falling bombs. The streets were emp...more

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Nov 24, 2009 Scott rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is Rawi's first published novel. I know Rawi from being a starving artist, so I bought the book out of solidarity. It sat on the shelf for a long time, then I picked it up. Wow, he can really write! This is a very visual book - I felt I was watching a movie about the story the whole time while reading it.

The novel is in the first person about a Lebanese petty criminal during the bloody civil war, who is only a little more ethical than a shithead. Just barely.
He and his buddy are riding ar...more

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Jan 20, 2010 Ardita rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

War is bad. War told from the other side is usually worse. Rawi Hage's use of language is indeed a knockout. It's lyrical and graphic at the same time. Despite how the characters were portrayed in the book, it was venting out ample of anger and disgust on being stuck in a war, while the plot and the ending.. that was just something indeed.

I wonder if someone will ever consider making a movie out of this book. It would be interesting to see the interpretation, although the new hot spots in Baghda...more

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Sep 22, 2009 Courtney Sidsworth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Set mostly in the Beirut of civil war Lebanon in the 1980s

It's dark and fast paced. Involves two long-time friends, Bassam and George, the latter assuming the persona of the Russian roulette playing Robert De Niro of The Deer Hunter.

The plot is action-packed and visually descriptive with language. shows the war's violent impact upon the innocent -- whole neighborhoods destroyed, mothers mourning, a child dying in Bassam's arms. There is no preaching about the excesses of war, only the showing. A...more

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Jun 12, 2008 Sam rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1-contemp-literary, setting-middle-east-nafrica, read-2008, reviewed

The writing was really beautiful, but by page 150, I was still waiting to be engaged by the story, care about what would happen, or even just plain connect with the protagonist. It never happened. I started skipping passages because I just didn't care.

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Mar 29, 2012 ..Effat.. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

تعجبني الروايات التي تثير في التساؤلات وتدفعني للبحث والتقصي
الحرب في لبنان وتلك البشاعة والفظاعة
حين يعبث بالبنادق و يصبح القتل اعتياديا
حين ينقص الماءوقبلها الأحباب
رغم كل تلك الفواجع أتساءل هل الحرب تبرر لنا الخيانة وانعدام الانسانية
في رأيي من كان صاحب مبدأ بحق إما أن يعيش على مبادئه أو يموت من أجلها
من يدري إن كان مصيري مثل مصيرهم هل كنت سأثبت أم لا
الحمد لله على نعمة الأمن والأمان

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Nov 01, 2010 Saleem Khashan rated it 4 of 5 stars

This novel is good, I have to admit that the main protagonist view of the Lebanese war is one I like; everybody knows that the eastern part of Beirut acted in insultingly individual manner making themselves Gods and Jessusess. I am not saying the others didn’t have criminals, after all the heads of state in Lebanon are either butchers of humans, thieves, or mostly both features come in one. But to the novel, it is fast paced; it has sex, drugs, guns, and few nice twists of fate. It is good enter...more

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Jan 03, 2013 Ethan rated it 2 of 5 stars

A very interesting concept for a book. Hage is certainly a skilled writer, particularly when it comes to outlining some powerful imagery in the primary setting of war-torn Beirut, and the central plot is fascinating. So why am I only giving this two stars? There are two reasons: the fast pacing and super short scenes of the novel made it very difficult for me to get a feel for any of the characters, even the 1st person narrator, and the lack of quotation marks annoyed the living daylights out of...more

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May 08, 2012 Grace rated it 5 of 5 stars

The book ended. That was the only disappointing thing about it. I enjoyed reading this book so much to the point where I subconsciously impeded reaching the last chapter.
Every time I come to exhaustively describe a war -the drastic change in the atmosphere that makes the country seem like a whole other one which we are not familiar with, how mothers, children, and fathers feel when they lose a loved one- , I render myself speechless. But the fact that Rawi Hage is able to depict the war with su...more The book ended. That was the only disappointing thing about it. I enjoyed reading this book so much to the point where I subconsciously impeded reaching the last chapter.
Every time I come to exhaustively describe a war -the drastic change in the atmosphere that makes the country seem like a whole other one which we are not familiar with, how mothers, children, and fathers feel when they lose a loved one- , I render myself speechless. But the fact that Rawi Hage is able to depict the war with such vivid descriptions and imageries that no one would think of using to describe a war, is what makes this novel a great one. I think that this portrayal of the war can be attributed to the fact that Hage is a photographer and I think that he made his view on photography clear to readers through Rhea, a minor character in the book, when she said, “Photography is about death. It preserves the illusion of a past moment that can never be re-enacted.”

“But in the absence of an initiative by the Lebanese government to preserve a memory of the war, it was artists and writers who took it upon themselves to create and recreate these events.” said Hage. And this is exactly what he did when he wrote this novel. It is not only the description of the setting, the atmosphere, and the characters that contributed to the brilliance of depicting the war, but also the omniscient third person point of view that the story is written in is what helped the reader feel exactly what s/he would feel if s/he were in a war. Having access to all of Bassam’s thoughts and his great desire to leave the country and get away from everything puts the reader in a place where he is agitated too if one of the characters dies or if something does not go according to plan.

Rawi Hage said in an interview, “I emphasized absurdity in my writing. Absurdity is one of those indefinable ambiguities that lingers between violence, humor, apathy, loss, and even sympathy and hope. War is certainly an ultimate act of absurdity.” And this is what you will find in the novel. All of the aspects that exist in our everyday life are beautifully crammed into this novel. Whether the characters feel it or not, you will definitely get in touch with violence, humor, apathy, loss, and even sympathy and hope while reading this book.

As for the style of writing, I absolutely loved the unconventional ways that Hage used to write the dialogue. Neither quotation marks nor indentations were used and this is what makes the dialogue seem so realistic. It is illustrated as it really is: An uninterrupted conversation between two people who do not have an audience to care about. Also, Hage rarely uses the terms, “sighed, shouted, told…” and leaves it up to the reader to infer what tone the characters adopted while speaking to each other. Also, we become well aware of the fact that Bassam can speak more than one language but Hage leaves it up to us to decide whether Bassam is speaking in Arabic, English, or French. I also loved the scattered slips of Lebanese words and well known, hilarious Lebanese phrases and swear words. In addition to that, the different allusions to the Lebanese culture in general are what I think help a Lebanese reader get in touch with his roots.

Finally, the open end is one of my favorite things in the book. Although this contradicts my opinion of open endings to brilliant novels, I think that Rawi Hage could not have ended the book in a better way. I won’t say anything else about this point because I don’t want to spoil it for future readers.

I highly recommend this book to every reader who is willing to put the teenage, fantasy, lovey-dovey books aside and read something mature which will contribute to his/her intellectual standards. But I also recommend getting familiar with the events of the Lebanese war before because Rawi Hage admitted himself that he wrote the book assuming that the readers would be aware of the Lebanese war and its events.

So there you have it, a brilliant book which unfortunately ended.
(less)

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May 13, 2009 Rhlibrary added it · review of another edition

Shelves: erica-s-picks

How does your life change when war breaks out all around you? In the very city of your childhood? With bombs falling and violence erupting on every street corner, best friends Bassam and George must find a way to survive the war-torn streets of Beirut during Lebanon’s civil war. The physical and emotional effects of war are conveyed through this compelling story of the choices available and how these young men find themselves on two very different paths to survival. Particularly poignant conside...more

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May 27, 2010 Mohawkgrl rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read this book last summer and picked it up at the library for two reasons; the first is because Mr. Hage lives in Montreal and I wanted to support a fellow Quebecer, and two because I grew up as a neighbour to a Lebanese family in MA., and often heard about the wars in this country.

If you don't mind that it contains a violent plot, this book is for you. I was interested in the characters which Hage does a fine job of defining for the reader. I could easily imagine the story being picked up...more

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Aug 23, 2011 Eman rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

كانا صديقيّ طفولة ، كتبت لهم الحرب في لبنان طريق مختلف عن الآخر ..
بسام لص ، ينتقم عند كل إعتداء عليه ، ويحلم بالهجرة إلى روما ، جورج المنظم إلى المليشيات المسلحّة ..
وبما أن الطرق مختلفة ، فالنتيجة إيضًا مختلفة ، جورج الذي يشارك في مجزرة صبرا وشاتيلا ، و بسام الذي يتهم
بقتل " الريس " بالتعاون مع عمه الشيوعي ، ويكون عرضه لتعذيب ، ثم الهرب إلى فرنسا ..
وفي فرنسا تتوالى الأحداث ، حتى تنكشف معظم الأسرار في ختام الرواية ..

السرد كان رائع جدًا ، وممتع ، برغم أن لغته كانت " غير نظيفة " ، وأنا أظن انها...more

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Apr 04, 2010 Shannon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: canadian-authors, canadian-reads, bookclub

A grim story with violence and emotions that have been battered so much that they no longer emote but with a hint of hope to end it.

At times I loved the poetic writing and the repetiton and the destruction in denominations of 10,000 but other times I found the poetry confusing and the repetition, well repetitive. I think the style reflects the story however, that poetry can be found in turmoil but that leads to confusion and living a childhood through civil war is probably very repititious and w...more

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Apr 16, 2010 Claire rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I had high hopes...but felt a bit let down in the end...I agree with the book jacket that there is something beautiful in Hage's lyrical prose, but the story itself was not nearly as interesting as I think it could be. Perhaps what they meant describing it as "cinematic" they really meant that the reader will feel distant like they're peering in from the outside...I much prefer to feel involved with the characters and their lives...wish also that the book had allowed me to learn more about the c...more

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Dec 07, 2011 Jean-Marc rated it 4 of 5 stars

(Sorry for the rant) But I think we are inundated by the point of view of the US and Israel on the middle east. I am not saying they are wrong, I am saying we have very little actual info from the Arabs point of view. So I was eager to read.

The story of 2 young men in the middle of the civil war in Lebanon is of course full of hormones and war. The author use a kind of 'hyper' writing style were long run-in sentences with several ideas collide together, this fits perfectly with the story.

The sto...more

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Sep 08, 2011 Alshaimaa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-favorite, arabic-books

إلى أين أنت ذاهب يا سيدي؟
إلى روما

مابين لبنان وروما أحداث أبدع الراوي "راوي" في نثرها بتناسق مبدع يبقيك متحفزاً حتى نهاية الرواية، ومابين حدث وآخر تفتح فمك رعباً، أو تدمع عينيك ألماً وحزناً
كيف للحرب أن تخلف أضراراً أكثر مما وصفه
كيف للحرب أن تجعلك تدخن سيجاراً وتشرب عصيراً متجولاً في شوارع تنظر للقذائف بطرف عين وكأنها مجرد حمامة نزلت من أعلى لتجمع بعض الأكل !!
كيف للحرب أن تكون أقسى من ذلك
مرعبة هي تفاصيل الحرب
ومهولٌ أن يحكيها شخص كان آخر همه تلك الحرب
مفجعة تلك الوحدة التي يكونها رجال الجيش ليكونون...more إلى أين أنت ذاهب يا سيدي؟
إلى روما

مابين لبنان وروما أحداث أبدع الراوي "راوي" في نثرها بتناسق مبدع يبقيك متحفزاً حتى نهاية الرواية، ومابين حدث وآخر تفتح فمك رعباً، أو تدمع عينيك ألماً وحزناً
كيف للحرب أن تخلف أضراراً أكثر مما وصفه
كيف للحرب أن تجعلك تدخن سيجاراً وتشرب عصيراً متجولاً في شوارع تنظر للقذائف بطرف عين وكأنها مجرد حمامة نزلت من أعلى لتجمع بعض الأكل !!
كيف للحرب أن تكون أقسى من ذلك
مرعبة هي تفاصيل الحرب
ومهولٌ أن يحكيها شخص كان آخر همه تلك الحرب
مفجعة تلك الوحدة التي يكونها رجال الجيش ليكونون بلا رحمة متعاضدين مفتخرين بانعدامها من قلوبهم
وبفخر تنطق النساء "أبناءنا أبطال" لأنهم شاركوا في حرب ضد بني جلدتهم

قصة شاب قاطع طريق متوحش ترحمه لأجل تلك الظروف التي تحيط به وتجعلك تغفر له لتصرفه بهذه البشاعة، قصته بين شوارع لبنان وفرنسا.. وروما

ومقطع حرب مرعب
كسرت الأبواب ودخلت منزلاً فرأيت امرأة على الأرض محاطة بجثث بناتها. نظرت في وجهي فقلت: تودين الانضمام إلى عائلتك، أليس كذلك؟
أجابت: أكمل مابدأته يابني.
يابني يابني (وضحك)
لكزتها بطرف بندقيتي مرات ومرات، هكذا(وراح يلطم الهواء بمسدسه) فتدفق الدم من رأسها كالشلال وانسكب على فخذي. همت الأزقة وحيداً. رأيت امرأة تكمم أولادها بيديها... كانوا يبكون. ثم توقفت لن تصدق ذلك فقد سمعت هديل طائر، يشبه هديل الطائر الذي اصطدناه في الجبال، أنا وأنت يابسام. أنا وأنت. طاردته عبر الجدران الضيقة فهرب ولحقت به. قفز فوق جثث مغمورة بجداول من مياه الطبخ. رأيته يطير فوق أشجار الزيتون وفوق التلال، ثم توقف وحط على جثة رجل ميت. رأيت يد رجل ميت تداعب ريشه
لقد رأيت ذلك!
طاردته مجدداً فدخل كوخاً. ركضت داخله ورأيته ينسل تحت سرير. رفعت الشرشف فرأيت ولدين صغيرين متقوقعين في خوفٍ تحت، وكانت جثة والدتهما ملقاة في الغرفة تنظر إليهما بعينين مفتوحتين

لم أرد إلا اصطياد الطائر. لم أرد إلا ذلك

المحزن..
قرأتُهُ وبَكيت
ورأيتُ مثله قبل يومين على شاشة نقلت الحدث.. وحكاية ثورة سوريا..تتكرر كما حرب لبنان
في غضون أيام بكيت الحرب مرتين(less)

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Apr 03, 2012 Andrea rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: canadian

De Niro's game reaches right into the heart of war. What strange bedfellows a tragic series of events can make. In war there is both the inner and outer destruction that takes place. The psychological undoing of people who are in a war ravaged country is really what this story is about. Rawi Hage takes us to the limits of destruction as he gets inside the mind of Bassam the young man and main character in De Niro's Game. Bassam sees the world from a traumatized state of mind; he truly believes...more

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About Rawi Hage

Rawi Hage is a Lebanese Canadian writer and photographer.

Born in Beirut, Hage grew up in Lebanon and Cyprus. He moved to New York City in 1982, and after studying at the New York Institute of Photography, relocated to Montreal in 1991, where he studied arts at Dawson College and Concordia University. He subsequently began exhibiting as a photographer, and has had works acquired by the Canadian Mus...more

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Books by Rawi Hage

Dinarzad's Children: An Anthology of Contemporary Arab American Fiction

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Quotes from De Niro's Game

“الطيور تحلّق وكنت أتوق بدوري إلى التحليق بعيدًأ” — 7 people liked it

“لم أكن أهرب من الحرب ، بل من فيروز وأغانيها” — 4 people liked it

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