Rate this book

Due In Uno (2010)

by Sayed Kashua(Favorite Author)

3.93 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

8854506672 (ISBN13: 9788854506671)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Neri Pozza

review 1: Sayed Kashua spoke at Notre Dame this afternoon under the sponsorship of the Kroc Institute for Peace Studies and the Theology Department. It was a very interesting presentation from a man who lives the life of his protagonists--an Arab Israeli living in Jerusalem. He writes in Hebrew but his birth language is Arabic. However, no one publishes in Arabic in Israel. The theme of identity is important, both for the unnamed lawyer and Jonathan (or Amir) and after hearing Kashua speak, I see how it plays out in his novel and in his own life. The letter found in the used copy of Kreutzer Sonata seemed to be a fairly artificial device to connect his stories--but it certainly was imaginative. I may need to read more of his work. The title? I don't know. The lawyer's story w... moreas written in the third person; Amir's story is first person. Why Second Person Singular?
review 2: I wish I'd read this book in Hebrew. I've read articles by the author in Ha'aretz magazine and his writing is humorous and honest.It would be nice to judge the book purely on its literary merits, but as the author is an Arab Israeli who writes in Hebrew, I couldn't help but pay attention to its politics.I was pleasantly surprised, because the book is so apolitical. There are no heroes or villains, just characters going about their lives - trying to belong, building relationships, questioning their identities.Since the story takes place in West Jerusalem, the main characters must navigate the challenges of that particular place, where the question of identity - Palestinian, Israeli, Arab, from West or East Jerusalem - is always present.The story itself is kind of slow. The characters are not interesting enough to make up for the lack of suspense. Nevertheless, I appreciated the story for giving me a glimpse into the life of an Israeli Arab without (seemingly) a political agenda. less

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