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The Registrar's Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages
Swimming for his life towards traffickers on the Italian shore, Selim enters a world where Kurdish refugees disguise themselves as tomatoes, dates of birth are a matter of opinion, and a residency permit is a ticket to paradise. When he ends up in a small town in Germany, Selim believes he is finally safe, until the law catches up with him and the clock starts ticking. Selim realises there is only one way to avoid deportation, if he dare try ...Fifteen years later, in a town hall in Paris, a Registrar receives an unsettling book in the post. The Registrar's Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages only fuels her suspicions surrounding an impending Kurdish wedding. Unsure how to intervene, she embarks on an investigation that brings her uncomfortably close to an old Selim. Written with real imaginative flair, heart and humour, The Registrar's Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages introduces an unlikely hero who'll prove impossible to forget, and a prodigious new talent in Sophie Hardach.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published March 31, 2011
8 people are currently reading
256 people want to read
About the author
Sophie Hardach
6 books37 followersSophie Hardach was born in 1979 and grew up in Germany. She studied economics and political science at Edinburgh University and the National University of Singapore. After graduating, she worked as a correspondent for Reuters news agency in London, Milan, Tokyo and Paris, where she now lives.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
December 1, 2016
We discuss this on Monday in my in-person book club, and I think it will be fantastic for conversation!
I know Kurdistan is not officially a country. Neither is Palestine, and in some minds, Eritrea. So what do you do if that is where you are from, and you are welcome neither in your homeland nor in the places you flee too? This is the story of Selim, who escapes Turkey after being associated with the PKK, swimming through a sea of waste in Italy on his way to Germany. He enters a marriage of convenience to stop from being deported on his 18th birthday. The narrator of the novel has a parallel story, working in the registrar's office in a town hall of Paris.
The story takes place in the 90s and overlaps September 11, 2001, and is a revealing look at how refugee status shifts and changes based on what has occurred elsewhere in the world.
I like this novel more from what it made me think about rather than the novel itself (but it is possible that this was the author's goal!) How many of us even know anything about the Kurdish people? I have read several novels where they play a role, but always from a Turkish author, always as the terrorists, the PKK. The rich history and folklore the author pulls in about the Kurdish people was very interesting, and I want to know more.
In fact, I'm considering making my 2017 year of reading around the world focused on people that don't exist in this same way. Mulling it over, we'll see what happens.
I know Kurdistan is not officially a country. Neither is Palestine, and in some minds, Eritrea. So what do you do if that is where you are from, and you are welcome neither in your homeland nor in the places you flee too? This is the story of Selim, who escapes Turkey after being associated with the PKK, swimming through a sea of waste in Italy on his way to Germany. He enters a marriage of convenience to stop from being deported on his 18th birthday. The narrator of the novel has a parallel story, working in the registrar's office in a town hall of Paris.
The story takes place in the 90s and overlaps September 11, 2001, and is a revealing look at how refugee status shifts and changes based on what has occurred elsewhere in the world.
I like this novel more from what it made me think about rather than the novel itself (but it is possible that this was the author's goal!) How many of us even know anything about the Kurdish people? I have read several novels where they play a role, but always from a Turkish author, always as the terrorists, the PKK. The rich history and folklore the author pulls in about the Kurdish people was very interesting, and I want to know more.
In fact, I'm considering making my 2017 year of reading around the world focused on people that don't exist in this same way. Mulling it over, we'll see what happens.
July 4, 2011
None of the main characters in The Registrar's Manual is where they began life. They are all immigrants and refugees including our first narrator. She is a thirty something German woman working in a registrar’s office in France. Her job is to assess marriage applications to determine if a prospective bride is being coerced into marriage. The application of a Kurdish couple arouses her suspicions. Her investigation leads to charges of ignorance of culture and traditions on her part. The ensuing difficulties force her to examine her revolutionary youth and involvement with a refugee named Selim fifteen years ago.
We learn from flashbacks that Selim was running from Saddam Hussein's horrific treatment of the Kurds when he swam to Italy. After some false starts and near misses the thirteen year old finds himself in Germany with three passports. There in relative safety, compared to what he's already been through, Selim tries to establish a life for himself while still maintaining his religion and culture. His attempts to be accepted and the uncertainty of his residency status are hard enough burdens to deal with but when the September 11th terrorist attacks occur Selim's problems multiply a hundredfold.
The nameless junior clerk in the registrar’s office will cross paths with Selim once again during her examination of the young Kurdish couple. Their past connection, her former radical ways and the guidebook she gets in the mail, The Registrar’s Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages unsettle her and Selim's life in startling ways.
Hardach plays with language throughout her novel and there are a lot of languages to play with in a book where the characters travel through such a large chunk of Europe. What you say, what you meant to say, what they heard and what will get you into trouble becomes even trickier when native tongues, second languages and I have no idea what you mean all collide. Add to that the uncertainty Hardach builds into Selim's history and the convolutions of bureaucracy.
The Registrars Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages is a smart and challenging look at many topical issues: law, belonging, prejudice, suspicion and marriage encased in imaginative storytelling. It's all amazingly interesting. Hardach has done all that and left her own opinions at the door. There is no preaching. She does not try to pound your brain into submission while she force feeds you her beliefs. Bravo. Sophie Hardach is absolutely an author to watch.
P.S. Right now The Registrar's Manuel for Detecting Forced Marriages is available in the U.K. but not here in the U.S.A. I have not seen any information about it being published here but if I had any say at a publishing house it would be.
We learn from flashbacks that Selim was running from Saddam Hussein's horrific treatment of the Kurds when he swam to Italy. After some false starts and near misses the thirteen year old finds himself in Germany with three passports. There in relative safety, compared to what he's already been through, Selim tries to establish a life for himself while still maintaining his religion and culture. His attempts to be accepted and the uncertainty of his residency status are hard enough burdens to deal with but when the September 11th terrorist attacks occur Selim's problems multiply a hundredfold.
The nameless junior clerk in the registrar’s office will cross paths with Selim once again during her examination of the young Kurdish couple. Their past connection, her former radical ways and the guidebook she gets in the mail, The Registrar’s Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages unsettle her and Selim's life in startling ways.
Hardach plays with language throughout her novel and there are a lot of languages to play with in a book where the characters travel through such a large chunk of Europe. What you say, what you meant to say, what they heard and what will get you into trouble becomes even trickier when native tongues, second languages and I have no idea what you mean all collide. Add to that the uncertainty Hardach builds into Selim's history and the convolutions of bureaucracy.
The Registrars Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages is a smart and challenging look at many topical issues: law, belonging, prejudice, suspicion and marriage encased in imaginative storytelling. It's all amazingly interesting. Hardach has done all that and left her own opinions at the door. There is no preaching. She does not try to pound your brain into submission while she force feeds you her beliefs. Bravo. Sophie Hardach is absolutely an author to watch.
P.S. Right now The Registrar's Manuel for Detecting Forced Marriages is available in the U.K. but not here in the U.S.A. I have not seen any information about it being published here but if I had any say at a publishing house it would be.
January 25, 2015
ACTUAL RATING: 3/5 stars
BOOK COVER/DESIGN: 3.5/5 stars. You'd think the book is a children's book because of the cover art, not that it's a bad thing.
GENERAL REVIEW/THOUGHTS: In total honesty, I was quite bored during the first part of the book. It was somehow dragging. What piqued my interest was on the second and third parts of the book. It was a good read, a moving story, but it wasn't exactly captivating. I learned a lot about Kurds and Kurdistan - this is the first I've actually read about them in depth. I think it depicts immigration, racism, and cultural differences really well. This is the first encounter I've ever had of forced marriages. The story is unique and the ending brought a smile to my face.
BOOK COVER/DESIGN: 3.5/5 stars. You'd think the book is a children's book because of the cover art, not that it's a bad thing.
GENERAL REVIEW/THOUGHTS: In total honesty, I was quite bored during the first part of the book. It was somehow dragging. What piqued my interest was on the second and third parts of the book. It was a good read, a moving story, but it wasn't exactly captivating. I learned a lot about Kurds and Kurdistan - this is the first I've actually read about them in depth. I think it depicts immigration, racism, and cultural differences really well. This is the first encounter I've ever had of forced marriages. The story is unique and the ending brought a smile to my face.
October 27, 2015
There was nothing technically wrong with Sophie Hardach's debut novel I just didn't find it a page turner.
The novel follows Selim and his unnamed first wife who marries him for political reasons to stop him being deported from Germany to Turkey. The novel which is mostly narrated by the unnamed registrar tells the story of there marriage. As mentioned above I didn't find this a page turner and although the book was obviously well researched nothing much happens. I found that the Registrar having no identity made her a faceless bureaucrat rather than a character I was interested in. An interesting concept but lacking any significant plot twists.
The novel follows Selim and his unnamed first wife who marries him for political reasons to stop him being deported from Germany to Turkey. The novel which is mostly narrated by the unnamed registrar tells the story of there marriage. As mentioned above I didn't find this a page turner and although the book was obviously well researched nothing much happens. I found that the Registrar having no identity made her a faceless bureaucrat rather than a character I was interested in. An interesting concept but lacking any significant plot twists.
April 3, 2022
The impacts of marrying for reasons other than love and a little more light shed on what its like to have to uproot yourself from everything dear to you and how hard it is to replant those roots. Definitely food for thought.
May 7, 2018
This is one of those books that has a whimsical cover but is filled with a quite a serious story, touching on politics, culture and love. Upon picking up this book, I didn't know what to expect. I didn't know it was going to be partially set in Germany, or that it will mention little bits of an Islamic lifestyle etc. I must say it's not the best story I've ever read on this subject, or the best way to tell it. However, I did learn quite a lot from this book and that deserves its own star.
First of all, this book talks about refuge long before Syria, really showing us that these issues aren't new—that it's actually been going on for decades around that part of the world, to say the least. And the fact that this issue is still hot means that the world is turning for the worst. It turns out that Israel is not the only people who are geographically lost—there's the Kurdish in this book. To us outsiders, of course, they look no different from the Turkish who oppress and hate them. But there's apparently an entirely complicated relationship between them.
The story is quite unique, because it's one of those things that people say they'd do, had the opportunity presented itself, but obviously never would—yet, our (nameless) main character actually did it. It's interesting to see that the emotional roller coaster that came with it, that sometimes she could feel almost as if she regretted it, that bureaucratic matters are hardly reliable. It's also interesting that they didn't even know each other before she offered to do what she did, yet she didn't think that should stand in the way of their union.
Truth be told, there aren't parts that I don't really like or feel should be changed. However, the story offers very little surprise or major conflict that would really reel the readers in—mostly, due to the personality of the main characters—that it doesn't leave a deep impression on, well, at least me. There are too many questions that go unanswered, that I'm not entirely sure why the main characters don't want to ask. It seems a very German thing not to ask, of course, but it still feels rather stupid not to, especially since she is so deeply involved in this. I also wish there is more told about the relationship between Kurdistan and Turkey or the Kurdish culture or any such things here. It could have been more informative, more intriguing and more emotional somehow.
All that being said, I would recommend this book for a culturally educative, light read.
First of all, this book talks about refuge long before Syria, really showing us that these issues aren't new—that it's actually been going on for decades around that part of the world, to say the least. And the fact that this issue is still hot means that the world is turning for the worst. It turns out that Israel is not the only people who are geographically lost—there's the Kurdish in this book. To us outsiders, of course, they look no different from the Turkish who oppress and hate them. But there's apparently an entirely complicated relationship between them.
The story is quite unique, because it's one of those things that people say they'd do, had the opportunity presented itself, but obviously never would—yet, our (nameless) main character actually did it. It's interesting to see that the emotional roller coaster that came with it, that sometimes she could feel almost as if she regretted it, that bureaucratic matters are hardly reliable. It's also interesting that they didn't even know each other before she offered to do what she did, yet she didn't think that should stand in the way of their union.
Truth be told, there aren't parts that I don't really like or feel should be changed. However, the story offers very little surprise or major conflict that would really reel the readers in—mostly, due to the personality of the main characters—that it doesn't leave a deep impression on, well, at least me. There are too many questions that go unanswered, that I'm not entirely sure why the main characters don't want to ask. It seems a very German thing not to ask, of course, but it still feels rather stupid not to, especially since she is so deeply involved in this. I also wish there is more told about the relationship between Kurdistan and Turkey or the Kurdish culture or any such things here. It could have been more informative, more intriguing and more emotional somehow.
All that being said, I would recommend this book for a culturally educative, light read.
November 10, 2024
I got this book from the community sharing shelves at the US embassy in Canberra because the cover looked pretty and the summary was unlike anything I have read before. It was an interesting idea but really not that great. I wish the characters were deeper and I wanted to know about how they ended up where they were.
August 30, 2022
Depending on how deeply you want to think about the story, there are a lot of things I feel that are left unsaid. Is it a shallow story of the inexperience of youth or is there something more sinister lurking.
May 8, 2025
Started and finished date - 02.05.25 to 04.05.25.
My rating - Three Stars.
This book was okay read but I found is book was bit boring and the cover of book was stunning. The writing was okay and it was bit hard follow also the atmosphere was fine but bit bland. The paced of plot was bit too slow for liking also the ending was okay. The characters was fine but they were bit bland and I would like them flash out bit more.
My rating - Three Stars.
This book was okay read but I found is book was bit boring and the cover of book was stunning. The writing was okay and it was bit hard follow also the atmosphere was fine but bit bland. The paced of plot was bit too slow for liking also the ending was okay. The characters was fine but they were bit bland and I would like them flash out bit more.
July 6, 2017
wonderful.
August 20, 2017
Quick and easy book to read. The story is average and there is not enough information about the characters to really find them interesting.
October 18, 2017
This was an enjoyable read and certainly a unique topic, but I can't say that anything about it really grabbed me.
June 17, 2018
This book was another OK read.
January 8, 2020
Liked author's writing style but story dragged at parts. A bit long. But good effort for first book
March 21, 2021
Loved this story for it's honesty.
October 13, 2021
The opening pages had me alternately crying and laughing. I can't wait to read her other stuff.
July 6, 2023
3 and a half stars - came together well at the end.
October 24, 2023
I have really enjoyed reading this sophisticated, mysterious and culturally educational novel. It took.me a whole to get into it but I'm very glad I read it.
February 26, 2013
This book recounts the stories of the two main characters who, for different reasons, each leave the countries of their respective birth and settle in new ones, and whose paths become intertwined but then separate as the years pass.
One of the characters, Selim,is a Kurdish refugee/political asylum seeker, whilst the second is a former German anarchist, turned Assistant registrar, living in Paris. (Do we ever learn her name?can't honestly recall it.)
When the Assistant Registrar receives an unsettling and somewhat curiously entitled book in the post - the "Registrar's Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages" of the novel's title - it serves to raise her suspicions surrounding an impending Kurdish wedding at which she will officiate.
As she sets out to investigate this relationship and ascertain whether it is a genuine or forced marriage, she finds that it makes her confront and reassess her past relationship with Selim.
Whlst I didn't love it or feel utterly enthralled by it to the exclusion of everything else, it did hold my interest, and I was keen to read to the end to find out how everything would be resolved. It is an intriguing story, with numerous well drawn characters, well written, well told and with a certain wry humour to it. It offers the reader much to think about in relation to multicultural Europe, and the plight of the Kurds and other refugees or asylum seekers, as well as the institution of marriage in all its forms, in different cultures. Because of it ability to prompt thoughtful discussion on these and many other issues it would make a great book club title.
One of the characters, Selim,is a Kurdish refugee/political asylum seeker, whilst the second is a former German anarchist, turned Assistant registrar, living in Paris. (Do we ever learn her name?can't honestly recall it.)
When the Assistant Registrar receives an unsettling and somewhat curiously entitled book in the post - the "Registrar's Manual for Detecting Forced Marriages" of the novel's title - it serves to raise her suspicions surrounding an impending Kurdish wedding at which she will officiate.
As she sets out to investigate this relationship and ascertain whether it is a genuine or forced marriage, she finds that it makes her confront and reassess her past relationship with Selim.
Whlst I didn't love it or feel utterly enthralled by it to the exclusion of everything else, it did hold my interest, and I was keen to read to the end to find out how everything would be resolved. It is an intriguing story, with numerous well drawn characters, well written, well told and with a certain wry humour to it. It offers the reader much to think about in relation to multicultural Europe, and the plight of the Kurds and other refugees or asylum seekers, as well as the institution of marriage in all its forms, in different cultures. Because of it ability to prompt thoughtful discussion on these and many other issues it would make a great book club title.
August 5, 2011
I can't say I LOVED this novel. I thought it was authetic, the characters real but I didn't really want to pick it up and keep reading it. A colleague saw me with it and encouraged me, so I did finish it, but I didn't feel satisfied when I finished it.
The Registrar was once an angry, politicised teenageer - I could relate to her. All that emotion, that sense of the terribel injustices of the world, the desire to take action - she was a real character to me. The adult woman, who'd become a Town Hall official - also real, but a bit boring really. Maybe too real? Maybe characters in novels need to be a bit bigger than life, otherwise are we just reading about ourselves, or our colleagues?
Selim, the Kurdish refugee, is also real, and sad and pathetic and brave and resilient. What is the reader supposed to do with thise knowledge, of the terrible plight of the Kurds? Apart from join Amnesty International, and maybe not travel as a tourist to Turkey, not prop up their Government sponsored atrocities? "Well you won't get my hard-earned NZ dollars, oh no, not until you treat the Kurds better!"
I honestly don't know the answers. Selim's situation is so difficult, but luckily not entirely hopeless at the end. I loved the portrayal of the legal aid people, the anarchists, the socialists. All mouth and no trousers as the English say, I've met so many radicals like that.
So overall...yes literary fiction. A book group book, something to discuss, and ponder, but for me, just not to LOVE.
The Registrar was once an angry, politicised teenageer - I could relate to her. All that emotion, that sense of the terribel injustices of the world, the desire to take action - she was a real character to me. The adult woman, who'd become a Town Hall official - also real, but a bit boring really. Maybe too real? Maybe characters in novels need to be a bit bigger than life, otherwise are we just reading about ourselves, or our colleagues?
Selim, the Kurdish refugee, is also real, and sad and pathetic and brave and resilient. What is the reader supposed to do with thise knowledge, of the terrible plight of the Kurds? Apart from join Amnesty International, and maybe not travel as a tourist to Turkey, not prop up their Government sponsored atrocities? "Well you won't get my hard-earned NZ dollars, oh no, not until you treat the Kurds better!"
I honestly don't know the answers. Selim's situation is so difficult, but luckily not entirely hopeless at the end. I loved the portrayal of the legal aid people, the anarchists, the socialists. All mouth and no trousers as the English say, I've met so many radicals like that.
So overall...yes literary fiction. A book group book, something to discuss, and ponder, but for me, just not to LOVE.
April 5, 2016
(Around the world in 52 books challenge #36 an identity book-a book about a different culture, religion or sexual orientation)
Beautifully narrated, the quirky nature of this story belies the serious theme. A young French Registrar of Marriages receives a manual in the post; it is designed to help her detect “marriage blanc” or marriages of convenience. However, when a young Kurdish couple send their cousin to register their impending marriage, she must thread the fine line between ensuring their union is genuine and intruding unnecessarily on their traditions. As she tries to ascertain that the bride is not being coerced into marriage, she simultaneously recounts her own youth and that of her friend, Selim, a young Kurdish asylum seeker.
At 13, Selim swims the last stretch of his journey to asylum in Europe. As a Kurd in Turkey, he sent away in fear that he'd face a lifetime violence and imprisonment. His story is told, not by himself, but by his friend as they each come of age in a newly-whole Germany. It stretches from before the events of 9/11 to the changed world after terror was visited on North America.
My knowledge of the Kurds, a people without a territory, was pretty non-existent before this read. It was also interesting to hear the narrator compare a pre- and post-9/11 Europe from the point of view of those undergoing the asylum process. The narrator contrasts the story of Selim and his family, with her upbringing as a German-turned-French-citizen. Beautifully told, heart-breaking in parts, but funny and clever too. Well worth a read.
Beautifully narrated, the quirky nature of this story belies the serious theme. A young French Registrar of Marriages receives a manual in the post; it is designed to help her detect “marriage blanc” or marriages of convenience. However, when a young Kurdish couple send their cousin to register their impending marriage, she must thread the fine line between ensuring their union is genuine and intruding unnecessarily on their traditions. As she tries to ascertain that the bride is not being coerced into marriage, she simultaneously recounts her own youth and that of her friend, Selim, a young Kurdish asylum seeker.
At 13, Selim swims the last stretch of his journey to asylum in Europe. As a Kurd in Turkey, he sent away in fear that he'd face a lifetime violence and imprisonment. His story is told, not by himself, but by his friend as they each come of age in a newly-whole Germany. It stretches from before the events of 9/11 to the changed world after terror was visited on North America.
My knowledge of the Kurds, a people without a territory, was pretty non-existent before this read. It was also interesting to hear the narrator compare a pre- and post-9/11 Europe from the point of view of those undergoing the asylum process. The narrator contrasts the story of Selim and his family, with her upbringing as a German-turned-French-citizen. Beautifully told, heart-breaking in parts, but funny and clever too. Well worth a read.
June 9, 2013
I love this book, I knew nothing about the Kurds except what I saw on the news, yet another people who seek recognition as a cultural entity and who are driven to extremism because of others cultures' reluctance to recognise them. The Registrar's view of the world resonated with me- no one can see countries' borders from space- it is all man made and false, as did her description of the world she grew up in - a time when politics mattered, people demonstrated and the important things needed a real political stand - not who follows which band and how big their following is on twitter.
It is a rich book - and I loved the confusion about who is forcing who.
I also think that the importance of language as a force of communication is central - as everyone is moving from country to country that becomes the big issue. Selim after 10 years can no longer speak to his own family because language has become a force for change and communcation becomes difficult. Fascinating, but understandably an interest of a writer who is German, living in France and writing in English.
It is a rich book - and I loved the confusion about who is forcing who.
I also think that the importance of language as a force of communication is central - as everyone is moving from country to country that becomes the big issue. Selim after 10 years can no longer speak to his own family because language has become a force for change and communcation becomes difficult. Fascinating, but understandably an interest of a writer who is German, living in France and writing in English.
December 1, 2013
Presents interesting facts on several topics: the lives of Kurdish refugees in Europe, long-term implications and hidden problems arising from a fake marriage undertaken to save a refugee from deportation. Despite a few intriguing passages and funny metaphors, the writing itself is mostly too dull, too dry to compensate for a plodding story line. As Selim counts the months and waits and waits, the reader tries to patiently stay with him and the book while juggling the odd transformation of the narrator from young, radical protester in Germany to quiet, thoughtful civil servant in France.... Despite the author's overt request to integrate the older and younger phases of the Registrar's life together into one frame, I never managed it. It's somehow still a worthwhile book but some secret ingredient seemed to be missing - it had a few nice moments, gained speed, but never took flight.
September 15, 2012
About:
* heroism in everyday acts
* resilience and survival
* good intentions that fail, partly due to human shortcomings but also because we never actually know the full story
* decency, being earnest
* making a difference in the world
* communication across impossible boundaries - gender, cultural, generational, political, national, family etc.
* frustration in communicating true experiences
* the impossibility of being unhappy all the time
I loved the way the structure of the narrative reflects the tentative and explorative flavour of the lives of the two main protagonists. Nothing is quite what it seems, and we tend to get it all wrong the first time around. Even so, something new always emerges when we make a serious attempt, and sometimes this new thing can turn out to be beatiful.
* heroism in everyday acts
* resilience and survival
* good intentions that fail, partly due to human shortcomings but also because we never actually know the full story
* decency, being earnest
* making a difference in the world
* communication across impossible boundaries - gender, cultural, generational, political, national, family etc.
* frustration in communicating true experiences
* the impossibility of being unhappy all the time
I loved the way the structure of the narrative reflects the tentative and explorative flavour of the lives of the two main protagonists. Nothing is quite what it seems, and we tend to get it all wrong the first time around. Even so, something new always emerges when we make a serious attempt, and sometimes this new thing can turn out to be beatiful.
November 10, 2015
The myriad cultural conflicts of the immigrant experience are a topic that thoroughly engages me, and is a genre that in our modern age can help to bridge gaps in understanding and promote a new, more accepting world. The soul who must leave his or her home world for another is lost and flounders....I believe that this book set out to delve into these ideas.
An captivating and unique story premise, TRMfDFM did not follow through for me. Perspective kept shifting at unexpected points, with no real revealing of character or events; environment was lacking; characters were flat; plot was unproductive. At many chapter ends, the narrator would provide a carrot to continue the page turning - but the mystery and drama that was promised really never fully emerged. This book, for me, is a could-have-been-great, but really wasn't.
An captivating and unique story premise, TRMfDFM did not follow through for me. Perspective kept shifting at unexpected points, with no real revealing of character or events; environment was lacking; characters were flat; plot was unproductive. At many chapter ends, the narrator would provide a carrot to continue the page turning - but the mystery and drama that was promised really never fully emerged. This book, for me, is a could-have-been-great, but really wasn't.
December 3, 2015
A young French registrar is sent a guide for detecting and preventing forced marriages. That get her thinking about the marriages she is solemnizing in the migrant communities around her. And that gets her thinking about her past, and her involvement with Selim, a Kurdish refugee.
This is a very satisfying book. I loved her characters, bursting onto the page, already complex, eccentric and probably arguing. I found her writing smooth. She does things with the point-of-view that the book is written from that would scandalize an amateur writing club, but mostly it works. Best of all, she gets you into the alternate world of the refugee, peopled with unhelpful family members and radical figures from the far left. This is a lot more informative and lot more fun than any amount of earnest reportage. Unusual, enjoyable: we've bought some for our bookloving friends.
This is a very satisfying book. I loved her characters, bursting onto the page, already complex, eccentric and probably arguing. I found her writing smooth. She does things with the point-of-view that the book is written from that would scandalize an amateur writing club, but mostly it works. Best of all, she gets you into the alternate world of the refugee, peopled with unhelpful family members and radical figures from the far left. This is a lot more informative and lot more fun than any amount of earnest reportage. Unusual, enjoyable: we've bought some for our bookloving friends.
April 27, 2012
It is an unusual book about misplaced people in Europe. At the centre of it is the struggle for survival of illegal immigrants. Two worlds are so different but sooner or later they have to find a common language and platform for understanding. The beginning of the story is more dynamic, it grips the reader but later the story losing its grip. Hopefully, at the end it may all come together. I am glad that I finished this book. The story of a young Kurd, who never felt safe in all his life, regardless where he lived but always believed into the better future touches the heart. There many lessons in this book about the tolerance, judgement and the impossibility to understand another culture in its full extent.
December 14, 2014
The story itself is relatively slight and as it's all told in retrospect by one of the characters you know from the start the things will generally turn out ok. The only annoyance is that big, dramatic events are often hinted at but never actually turn out in the end to be that big or dramatic, though I guess that's rather like real life. I find the writing style really appealing and the opening chapters are as strong as anything I read this year. While I won't say Hardach's style is unique I will say that it is at the very least different enough that it stands out from other contemporary novels.
Well worth a read.
Well worth a read.
October 16, 2012
I struggled with whether to give this three or four stars. It's an intriguing story, mostly well told. Not brilliant, but worth the read for lots of reasons. And glimpses back into South East Turkey and the plight of the Kurdish people, and of asylum seekers in foreign countries, and of the mind of a young woman who somewhat naively decides to help then discovers the implications over many years.....
Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews