Mohsin Hamid

First, I couldn't finish the book.

The reason I couldnt finish the book is not so much for the content, but for the narrator. He is just bad. He has no inflection, no passion, is flat and isanyone rline monotone. I heard him being interviewed on the NY Times Book Review podcast and he was just as bad. Why the publisher let him read his own novel, when it is blatantly obvious he isn't capable of doing it justice, is ashame. If he insisted on doing so, the he did a great disservice to his work.

I may have to try and finish it down the road and pick up where I left off in the audio version.

Note: To anyone reading this and is considering this book, I implore you to READ it and NOT listen to it. Hopefully you will have a better experience than I did.… (mer)

Actual rating: 4.5/5

Well, this is a tough one. I definitely liked this book, but am struggling to find words to explain why... Exit West is an emotionally powerful book, yet it is always soft: it moves slowly and delicately through Saeed and Nadia's story, never quite developing into a full-blown drama (despite the war setting), but despite that I felt a certain heaviness of heart throughout.

Hamid's prose is gentle and poetic, and manages to conjure all sorts of feelings, from the most noble to their complete opposite. I had read only one of his books previously, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and felt the same sort of vibe here. I personally love his writing style, but am fully aware that it is fairly unique and as such may not appeal to everyone. Beware if you like reasonable, logic books, as this is definitely not one of them: while I wouldn't go as far as calling Exit West magical realism, it does ask the reader to suspend their disbelief as our protagonists cross magical doors that link their war-stricken country to move to Europe.

Exit West is a highly metaphorical read which, through its quiet and lyrical prose, provides one of the best accounts of the so-called "refugee crisis" I have read so far. Following two young people in love as they do their best to continue living normally while their country crumbles around them under the weight of war, it is a heartbreaking account of the difficult choices and sacrifices that so many are forced to make - and reminds us that deciding to leave is only the beginning of the struggle. Going further than this, Hamid shows us the long-term effects of forced displacement and how it forces change both in Saeed, Nadia and the other migrants around them, and in the societies that receive them.

Incredibly relevant to today's debates, Exit West is a touching tale of love, war and disillusionment; a harrowing account of displacement, survival and growing up. This book reaches across the whole spectrum of human emotions, and that is what makes it especially hard for me to review. In short, highly recommended.

I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.… (mer)

The narrator of this book is a Pakistani man who goes to Princeton and then gets a job at a prestigious financial firm in New York City. He has a strange unrequited relationship with a young woman who can't let go of her love for her tragically deceased boyfriend. He thrives in the US, works very hard at his job, and loves his decadent Western life. Then the 9/11 attacks happen, and he sees the backlash against Muslims, and he becomes disillusioned about the US.

I think this book might have lost some of its impact in the 20+ years since 9/11. I didn't find anything particularly shocking or revelatory. To me it is not surprising that a Muslim immigrant would have anti-American feelings, especially after how viciously the US reacted to 9/11.

"Reluctant Fundamentalist" seems like a very strange title. The narrator does not become a religious fundamentalist. He might be labeled a terrorist sympathizer, but actual religious doctrine is not mentioned at all in this book.

The pacing of the story is strange. The book has a very long build-up to 9/11, and then seems to end pretty quickly. The whole storyline with the girlfriend doesn't seem to add anything to the story.… (mer)