April 2016 Read: A Constellation of Vital Phenomena

[Irene]

I love that ending. Before that, we see into the future, the past, the present. I loved that!
My heart went out to Ramzan. I imagine him as a rabid dog. He was a loved and loving man until he was bit witj the virus of evil. His dad, leaving him, that must be so hard, but he is rabid, figuratively speaking.

[Irene]

Sheila wrote: "I agree with both of the Irenes!"

LOL

[Irene]

With his father gone, no longer needing to find insolin for him, do you think Ranzem will stop informing? Do you think he will kill himself? Will he also run and try to hide? Or, is he too far gone to change things?

[Rebecca]

I like your thoughts on Ram Irene. I agree with others wish there were books out there like this for young people to learn about. I feel like others after I finished I am still digesting it and thinking about it a lot. Great book. I am glad I learned more about the wars in Chechneya.

[Sheila , Supporting Chick]

Irene wrote: "With his father gone, no longer needing to find insolin for him, do you think Ranzem will stop informing? Do you think he will kill himself? Will he also run and try to hide? Or, is he too far gone..."

I think Ramzem is bitter from what happened to him, from being castrated, from having the community know about it, that he will be a bitter man forever.

[Irene]

I agree, he is bitter and I don't see him working through it any time soon. But, who will he direct his anger toward? If he continues to inform, he is assisting the people who tortured him. If he stops informing and risks being picked up a third time and executed, he is protecting the community that shunned him. If he harms himself, he is directing that anger back on himself. If he runs like his father....

[Irene]

Any final comments on the novel before the month ends? Thanks for reading this one with me. I thought it was a wonderful book.

[Sheila , Supporting Chick]

Thank you for nominating this one, Irene. It is not a book I would have picked up on my own, but I greatly enjoyed reading it, and discussing it with everyone!

[Rebecca]

This was a great read for me. I am so glad we read it in this group. It is one of those books I am still thinking about. Thank you Irene

[Jennifer W]

I'm still making my way through this. Last night I read a line that struck me :

The war of independence so quickly conflated with jihad because no one cared about the self-determination of a small landlocked republic.

Could that sentiment not describe dozens of conflicts of the last 100 years?

[Sheila , Supporting Chick]

Jennifer W wrote: "Could that sentiment not describe dozens of conflicts of the last 100 years? "

Yes, it probably, sadly, could.

[Jennifer W]

I finished it last night. I think the writing was lovely, but the characters, especially the men, were so interwoven that I couldn't keep them straight. Maybe if I reread it at some point, I would fare better.

[Irene]

I often find that, when there is a large number of characters with unfamiliar names, I get them confused.