Martyr!: A novel

too choppy for me. not sure where we were going in this book.

The author of this book is a poet first and you can tell. It's so incredibly, beautifully written without being too much. After reading it, I have a list as long as my arm of some of my favorite quotes. A couple call-outs: - "Fashion is a capitalist weapon." Boom. He said that. - "The only difference between a coal miner and a prostitute is our retrograde puritan values about sex. And misogyny." Mind. Blown. NGL, I was dragging my feet about reading this one but it's for one of my book clubs and the clock was ticking on my library loan. I'm not great with emotions and feelings (lol) and was preparing myself for all of them and the potential emotional spiral they might lead me to. But as soon as I cracked this book, I was done for and could not put it down. A lot of that was because of the artistry in the writing, but also because of how compelling the characters and story were. It's hard not to read this through the lens of our current political climate in the U.S. It would be tough to be an Iranian immigrant to the U.S. in any decade, but recent political events skew my imagination that much more. Akbar's depictions of the U.S. President also are chilling and hit a little different than they might had this book come out even one year earlier. I can personally relate to so much of this book. The constant introspection and morbid thoughts, alcoholism and recovery, abandonment issues, the American immigrant experience, frustrations and disgust with late capitalism, but I could never communicate them so flawlessly as Akbar does. On the flip side, there are parts of it I cannot relate to at all, which are somehow even more meaningful and had me thinking about the experience of people who AREN'T just like me. The tough choices that have to be made and whether that makes the decision makers brave or selfish or maybe a little of both. This is one of those books that stops you in your tracks, makes you stop breathing for a minute, and causes your brain to start whirring in a never ending circle of questions and musings. It leaves you feeling high and confused and content all at once. Cannot recommend this one more. The perfect book club read so you can discuss and analyze all.the.things.

what a gift it was to read this book. compelling, devastating, beautiful, and earnest. i loved this book. i finished this book utterly and thoroughly moved.

DNF maybe will go back another time

Loved where the story went and the messages behind the verbose text. This book felt long and slow to start.