Of Dreams and Assassins (Caraf Books)

by Malika Mokeddem | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: 0813919940 Global Overview for this book
Registered by MarysGirl of Brooklyn, New York USA on 9/25/2008
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This book is in the wild! This Book is Currently in the Wild!
2 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by MarysGirl from Brooklyn, New York USA on Thursday, September 25, 2008
I got this book from a generous Brooklyn FreeCycler specifically to share
with others through BookCrossing.com.

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This book is now yours to do with as you wish, but I hope choose to pass it on.

Thanks and Happy “Crossings!”
MarysGirl


Journal Entry 2 by MarysGirl from Brooklyn, New York USA on Monday, May 17, 2010
Trade paperback in good condition. From the back:

"Of Dreams and Assassins is the urgent and rhythmic fourth novel of Malika Mokeddem, her second to appear in English. Born in Algeria to a Bedouin family that had only recently become sedentary. Mokeddem was raised on the stories of her grandmother who encouraged her education at a time when girls did not go to school. Although raised in a tolerant strain of Islam, Mokeddem nevertheless felt the weight of custom and tradition. Of Dreams and Assassins, though not strictly autobiographical, evokes through the beauty and vastness and oppressive heat of the desert Mokeddem's early yearning for freedom. Through its heroine, Kenza and her simultaneous rebellion and immersion in the literary classics at a boarding school, the novel dramatizes the possibilities for women to express their identities."

My review: This is a lovely, lyrical story, showing with hearthbreaking depth the suffering of women under an oppressive regime. Mokeddem lived this life and her personal experience shows through. Kudos to the translator K. Melissa Marcus for her brilliant translation which resonates with the emotion and poetry of the original. Kenza is a damaged narrator who explores the pain of her life like a probe in an open wound. It's with relief, the reader follows her to some semblance of safety and the slight possibility of happiness. One caveat: in my edition there is a twenty-page introduction covering the history of Algeria, Mokeddem's life, and other literature of the diaspora. It's interesting, but read it at the end for context. I almost put the book away, because the introduction was so academic.

Journal Entry 3 by MarysGirl at Brooklyn, New York USA on Thursday, July 22, 2010

Released 13 yrs ago (7/22/2010 UTC) at Brooklyn, New York USA

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

This book is going into my "Something for Everyone MTB Book Box"
for someone else to enjoy.

2010 THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE - RELEASE

Journal Entry 4 by wingbookstogivewing at Springville, Tennessee USA on Friday, August 13, 2010
Selected from MarysGirl's Something for Everybody MTR Bookbox, it looks good and thanks for including it!

Journal Entry 5 by wingbookstogivewing at Bookbox in -- Bookbox, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- USA on Sunday, January 27, 2013

Released 11 yrs ago (1/26/2013 UTC) at Bookbox in -- Bookbox, -- By post or by hand/ in person -- USA

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Released into the ABC bookbox, happy travels!

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