Questions About Exit West

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Answered Questions (20)

Does the page and a half at the beginning that the author spends talking about the parent's sex life in vivid detail have anything to do with the actual story? The father's impotence and the mother's insatiable sexual appetite seems to be well out of place...

James (JD) Dittes I think it foreshadows Saeed and Nadia's own sexual relationship, which of course represents a distance will be impacted by losing their homes and liv…moreI think it foreshadows Saeed and Nadia's own sexual relationship, which of course represents a distance will be impacted by losing their homes and living abroad as refugees.

I also think that Hamid is using the scene (and Nadia's preference of being covered in a black robe despite her preference for both sex and drugs) to challenge western readers' assumptions about Muslims in general and refugees in particular--they are indeed very normal people who laugh, who have sex, who enjoy drugs the same as we do--who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. One finds a similar dynamic in Nihad Sirees's The Silence and the Roar, which is also about Syria but not at all about refugees.(less)

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Sounds like a great story has anybody read it?

Susan I just finished this and liked it well enough. I did think that "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" was much better, however. You might want to start with …moreI just finished this and liked it well enough. I did think that "The Reluctant Fundamentalist" was much better, however. You might want to start with that one? (That's what I did--which meant that I was a little underwhelmed by this one). This book had some beautifully-written prose that could almost make you cry. However, the plot often meandered (which may be the author's point--migrants are often caught in multiple cities and stuck there in circumstances beyond their control).(less)

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What did the man in the closet who watched the woman sleep and then exit through the window have anything to do with the storyline? Also, what about the man in the alley who started to follow the Filipino girls feeling the metal (knife?) in his pocket? Both incidents (which occurred in different parts of the world then where Saeed and Nadia were living) seemed to not have anything to do with the story.

Tammy Davis I think they were illustrations of the doors that transported people to other places. People just came out of nowhere and then continued on--like the …moreI think they were illustrations of the doors that transported people to other places. People just came out of nowhere and then continued on--like the way Saeed and Nadia left their country.(less)

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Why do you think that the author writes in long, meandering sentences with lots of commas? These sentences seem to contain one point, then another, then a qualification. Does the wandering style reflect the wanderings of the refugees? Or could it be that the many qualifications show that Hamid wants to introduce new ideas and alternative viewpoints?

Beth Chapple When I listened to this author read his own work (via libro.fm audio), I learned what he was doing. His pauses often mean there will be a switch, even…moreWhen I listened to this author read his own work (via libro.fm audio), I learned what he was doing. His pauses often mean there will be a switch, even a juxtaposition. Not sure how to put it, but it is all part of the tone he creates.(less)

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Magical realism - yes or no?