The Thirty Names of Night by Zeyn Joukhadar

Five years after a suspicious fire killed his ornithologist mother, a closeted Syrian American trans boy sheds his birth name and searches for a new one. He has been unable to paint since his mother’s ghost has begun to visit him each evening. As his grandmother’s sole caretaker, he spends his days cooped up in their apartment, avoiding his neighborhood masjid, his estranged sister, and even his best friend (who also happens to be his longtime crush). The only time he feels truly free is when he slips out at night to paint murals on buildings in the once-thriving Manhattan neighborhood known as Little Syria.

I appreciate that this is a fictional story about a trans man or trans-masculine person because there aren't many of those. I love how this novel didn't solely focus on transness as many trans novels often do. I gave this 3 stars because although the story was complex and heartfelt it was a bit slow at times.

I have a soft spot for queer protagonists and #OwnVoices books, and this book was no exception! Heartbreaking as much as it is heartwarming, #Thirtynamesofnight follows Nadir, a trans boy in his search for the missing painting of a previously undiscovered bird by famed Syrian-American artist Laila Z. This elusive bird connects generations of Syrian-Americans crossing from New York City to Michigan and beyond.

Joukhadar's writing is absolutely beautiful, and his mastery of storytelling effortlessly weaves together the lives of two distinct and seemingly unrelated people separated by generations. While Nadir's mission to find the lost bird begins as a way to cope with his ornithologist mother's death, the story slowly unfolds into a mission towards acceptance and heritage.

The characters were all lovable, well-written and experienced a lot of growth throughout the novel. Even though she was somewhat of a secondary character, I absolutely loved Nadir's grandmother — she was strong and unyielding and kind in a way that reminds me of my grandparents, who also immigrated to the US. Perhaps my only critique was that I found the pace of the team's mission in uncovering Laila Z's mysterious past to be somewhat slow and contrived. Maybe though, that was on purpose? Maybe I'm just getting too caught up in the mission of discovering the bird, that I'm not appreciating the beauty/story along the way.

I liked the diversity of this book but the diverse characters in the diary felt a little forced. Not that it took away from the story, but Nadir who later in the book comes out as a trans man happens to find a diary of an artist her dead mother liked a lot. They also both deal with gender identity issues either directly or indirectly. JUst seemed s little forced to me.

This however did not take away from the writing style which was beautiful.