Emma Goto
A very fantastical-yet-not-fantasy book, sort of similar to 100 Years of Solitude. It follows the story of a family in Iran post the Islamic Revolution in the 1960s. Although the book has magic, ghosts and even a mermaid, it's missing that something that would make me want to categorise it as a fantasy book - maybe because of its very serious subject matter, and really the lack of anything good happening. (It's just one tragedy after another). The author escaped from Iran herself, and with little cultural references explained in the footnotes, you can see how it's a lament for what could have been for her country.
I gave it a 4 stars because it has a bit of a slow start, with the fantasy elements feeling quite overwhelming and confusing at first.
Originally posted at www.emgoto.com.
A very fantastical-yet-not-fantasy book, sort of similar to 100 Years of Solitude. It follows the story of a family in Iran post the Islamic Revolution in the 1960s. Although the book has magic, ghosts and even a mermaid, it's missing that something that would make me want to categorise it as a fantasy book - maybe because of its very serious subject matter, and really the lack of anything good happening. (It's just one tragedy after another). The author escaped from Iran herself, and with little cultural references explained in the footnotes, you can see how it's a lament for what could have been for her country.
I gave it a 4 stars because it has a bit of a slow start, with the fantasy elements feeling quite overwhelming and confusing at first.
Originally posted at www.emgoto.com.
