Just released: March 7, 2017
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Genre: Literary
Hardback: 240 pages
Rating: 4
First sentence(s):
In a city swollen by refugees out still mostly at peace, or at least not yet openly at war, a young man met a young woman in a classroom and did not speak to her.
In a country teetering on the brink of civil war, two young people meet—sensual, fiercely independent Nadia and gentle, restrained Saeed. They embark on a furtive love affair and are soon cloistered in a premature intimacy by the unrest roiling their city. When it explodes, turning familiar streets into a patchwork of checkpoints and bomb blasts, they begin to hear whispers about doors—doors that can whisk people far away, if perilously and for a price. As the violence escalates, Nadia and Saeed decide that they no longer have a choice. Leaving their homeland and their old lives behind, they find a door and step through.
Exit West follows these characters as they emerge into an alien and uncertain future, struggling to hold on to each other, to their past, to the very sense of who they are. Profoundly intimate and powerfully inventive, it tells an unforgettable story of love, loyalty, and courage that is both completely of our time and for all time.
My two-bits:
Speaks to the plight of migration due to circumstances. Adjustments and homesickness are explored.
A love story with its uncertainty and ups and downs parallels the turbulence involved in the various moves.
AND the added element of travel via doors adds an interesting take.
Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews (details)
AND Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer (details)
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Author event and Bought:
Book Passage of San Francisco hosted an author event with Mohsin Hamid to celebrate the release of his latest, Exit West, which is a timely story of immigrants. Loved the readings (more than one passage) and the Q&A was enlightening on thoughts of migration and the world of fiction vs. reality.
In a country teetering on the brink of civil war, two young people meet—sensual, fiercely independent Nadia and gentle, restrained Saeed. They embark on a furtive love affair and are soon cloistered in a premature intimacy by the unrest roiling their city. When it explodes, turning familiar streets into a patchwork of checkpoints and bomb blasts, they begin to hear whispers about doors—doors that can whisk people far away, if perilously and for a price. As the violence escalates, Nadia and Saeed decide that they no longer have a choice. Leaving their homeland and their old lives behind, they find a door and step through.
Exit West follows these characters as they emerge into an alien and uncertain future, struggling to hold on to each other, to their past, to the very sense of who they are. Profoundly intimate and powerfully inventive, it tells an unforgettable story of love, loyalty, and courage that is both completely of our time and for all time.
THANKS to MAD of MAD Writes (and Reads) for sending me a surprise package of goodies! A couple of these are perfect for my Foodie Read challenge ;-)
Mrs. Lee & Mrs. Gray by Dorothy Love - Amazon | Goodreads
Bread of the Dead by Ann Myers Amazon | Goodreads
Cinco de Mayhem by Ann Myers Amazon | Goodreads
Museum postcards and notebook (tea party theme)
Four Asian-American rappers run into tough obstacles as they try to make it big in Hip Hop, a genre rooted in black culture.
PART of CAAMFest 2017 (Celebrating Asian American Film, Music and Food - here) I was treated to a Q&A with Salima Koroma (Director), Jaeki Cho (Co-producer), Awkwafina, Rekstizzy and Lyricks after the film showing. AND there were live performances from the three rappers present.
The film did well in presenting the Asian American experience in the Hip Hop world. Unfortunately, there is a small audience for these performers and they remain unknown to the mainstream. It's films like these that help introduce these artists to the world.
