Exit West in Around the World in 80 Books

Jun 08, 2018 Rachel N. rated it liked it

Shelves: play-book-tag, immigration, magical-realism, read-in-2018

Nadia and Saeed are a young couple newly dating in an unnamed middle eastern country when war breaks out. Soon doors begin appearing that take people to other parts of the world and a worldwide immigration crisis arises. I never really connected with Nadia or Saeed, the only two characters who get names, which made me less invested in the story. There are also brief stories of other people who use the doors scattered throughout the book but I don't think they added much to the story. Hamid does ...more

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Apr 30, 2017 Jen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: book-club, we-need-diverse-books

'Achingly beautiful' seems to be a perfectly apt description here. ...more

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Jun 15, 2018 Lara rated it liked it

The beginning and end of this book are both wonderful but the rest of it is more like an essay than a novel. He uses the form to share a fairly polemical perspective of borders, refugees and nativism--which I am sympathetic to but doesn't necessarily make for incredible fiction. ...more

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Oct 02, 2017 Anna rated it really liked it

This is a contemporary novel with both significance and relevance for modern times. Told from the perspective of refugees it provides an opportunity for the reader to understand the issues facing people who find themselves a long way from the place they call home and who frequently arrive in destinations where they are not made welcome.

For my full review please visit my blog at: https://leftontheshelfbookblog.blogsp... ...more

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Nov 03, 2018 Laura (booksnob) rated it really liked it

Shelves: literature, science-fiction, world-lit, 2018, botm

Wow, this small book packs a punch. Will we all end up as refugees, moving place to place to escape persecution for being human? This would make a great book club choice.

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