Profoundly intimate and powerfully inventive, it tells an unforgettable story of love, loyalty, and courage that is both completely of our time and for all time. Vinh nguyen specializes in areas of asian diasporic literatures and cultures, critical refugee studies, autobiography, film, critical race theory, and global anglophone literature. Exit west is subtly violent, and i think this technique is used to show the effects war has on common, everyday people. You wake in the morning and drink your coffee or tea. As for the effect of exit west on readers, i have written a halfbook, and readers will write the other half with their imaginations, and together we will make the experience of the novel. Mohsin hamids exit west reflects migration as a story that. The latest american library association ala book club central sjp pick, chosen by honorary book club central chair sarah jessica parker, is exit west by mohsin hamid, published by riverheadan imprint of penguin random house. A novel about refugees that feels instantly canonical. I have watched sarah jessica parker and admired her work for many years, as so many of us have. Mar 10, 2017 jia tolentino on mohsin hamids new novel, exit west, in which he rewrites the world as a place gorgeously, permanently overrun by refugees and migrants. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. As we do every month, we have asked you to send in questions. Mohsin hamid answers reader questions about his book, exit west.
An interview with mohsin hamid, author of exit west. Exit west has been shortlisted for the 2017 man booker prize, longlisted for the ala andrew carnegie medal for excellence in fiction and is a. This narrative one which echoes the lived experiences of countless people fleeing war and privation is given. It tells the story of saeed and nadia, who live in an unnamed city in a country on the brink of civil war. Exit west by mohsin hamid book club discussion questions. The book is part ripped from the headlines and part magic realism. A novel about refugees that feels instantly canonical the.
Magical novel exit west explores what makes refugees leave. Mohsin hamids novel is our march pick for the new pbs newshournew york times book club, now read this. Mohsin hamids story about refugees is a novel, not journalism, but it. Mohsin hamid answers reader questions about his book, exit west, the third selection in the pbs newshournew york times bookclub, now. This adds to the sense that the events it describes are normal, unsurprising. Mohsin hamids exit west reflects migration as a story. Exit west, by mohsin hamid mohsin hamids new novel imagines a country, never specified, swollen with refugees from an ongoing conflict and a series of mysterious doors that. Sarah jessica parker selects mohsin hamids exit west as. But this is a novel, exit west, that uses realism and some magic to capture life for millions today and a possible future. A brief, polemical fable that puts the reality of the refugee crisis into sharp relief. The novel is about a young couple, saeed and nadia, who live in an unnamed city undergoing civil war and finally have to flee, using a system of magical doors, which lead to different locations around the globe. Mohsin hamids novel exit west raises immigration issues. When we migrate, writes hamid, we murder from our lives those we leave behind.
Hamid had me rereading and reflecting upon every page. Mohsin hamids dynamic yet lapidary books have all explored the convulsive changes overtaking the world, as tradition and modernity. Overall, this book came out rated at a 5 on an average of ten, coming in roughly just over average in our rating scale. In exit west, a city in the muslim world is plunged into violence and two lovers join the mass migration of our time. Jia tolentino on mohsin hamids new novel, exit west, in which he rewrites the world as a place gorgeously, permanently overrun by refugees and migrants. Reading mohsin hamids acclaimed new novel, exit west, as a window on the current global migration crisis is a mistake. The following version of this book was used to create this guide. We rate books on the discussion the book prompts, likability, readability, and gamesthemes. A novel and millions of other books are available for instant access. Oct 11, 2017 chicago the latest american library association ala book club central sjp pick, chosen by honorary book club central chair sarah jessica parker, is exit west by mohsin hamid, published by riverheadan imprint of penguin random house. Enter for your chance to win a copy of exit west by mohsin hamid, book club central honorary chair sarah jessica parkers new pick. Mar 16, 2017 in exit west, a city in the muslim world is plunged into violence and two lovers join the mass migration of our time. True, and saeed and nadia murder a bit of themselves in fleeing, too, making new homes in london and then san francisco while shed of their old, innocent selves and now locked in. Donna seaman, booklist adult books editor and cochair of the sjp picks selection committee, spoke with mohsin hamid recently about his book exit west and its selection as the second sjp pick.
This is the missing book on the fall of saigon weve been waiting for. Mohsin hamids exit west is a commanding yet fanciful outlook of the current climate of global. Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors. Mar 30, 2018 but this is a novel, exit west, that uses realism and some magic to capture life for millions today and a possible future. The world imagined by the pakistaniborn hamid is not one facing a migration issue migration is the environment in which all its characters swim. Mar 06, 2017 hamid also briefly discusses the fate of native americans and, at books end, profiles the african american muslim community near san francisco. Over,000 south vietnamese allies were saved because of fords moral certitude. March 7, 2017 hamid discontent and its civilizations, 2014, etc. Mar 12, 2017 exit west by mohsin hamid is published by hamish hamilton. A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy. His essays, a number of them collected as discontent and its civilizations, have appeared in the new york times, the washington. Exit west is a 2017 novel by pakistani author mohsin hamid.
Mohsin hamids exit west is a story about migration and refugees, focused on a young couple fleeing a brutal civil war in their nevernamed native country. But this is a novel, exit west, that uses realism and some magic to capture life for. Mohsin hamid is the author of the international bestsellers exit west and the reluctant fundamentalist, both finalists for the man booker prize. His first novel, moth smoke, won the betty trask award and was a finalist for the penhemingway foundation award. This belief shines through in hamids latest novel, exit west, which chronicles the journey of nadia and saeed, two young people who begin a relationship in an unnamed eastern country on the brink of civil war and eventually flee in the hopes of finding sanctuary in the west. Politics and prose offers superior service, unusual book choices, and a haven for. Classical antiquity also the classical era or classical period is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the mediterranean sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient greece and ancient rome, collectively known as the grecoroman world. Magical novel exit west explores what makes refugees. His essays, a number of them collected as discontent and its civilizations, have appeared in the new york times, the washington post, the. Sep 24, 2017 reading mohsin hamids acclaimed new novel, exit west, as a window on the current global migration crisis is a mistake. If you are the publisher or author of this book and feel that the.
Sarah jessica parker selects mohsin hamids exit west for. The book is not a prescription, it is an invitation to dance. Its an epic and wonderfully told story of history, science and reportage about the. The novel, which is told through the thirdperson omniscient perspective, opens on the first meeting between its two central characters, saeed and nadia, in. The novel, which is told through the thirdperson omniscient perspective, opens on the first meeting between its two central characters, saeed and nadia, in a class on corporate branding. An interview with mohsin hamid, author of exit west penguin. Exit west is an epic compressed into a slender pageturnerboth completely of our time and for all time, mohsin hamids most ambitious and electrifying novel yet. Mohsin hamids exit west is a disconcertingly timely novel, one about migration, refugees, terrorism, and the rise of jingoistic nativism in the west. Then you can start reading kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer no kindle device required.
Exit west by moshin hamid imagines the forces that drive people from their homes into new lands. This book and author deserve a strong american readership. Were at 51,000 readers and counting in the book club. Hamid also briefly discusses the fate of native americans and, at books end, profiles the african american muslim community near san francisco. Exit west author mohsin hamid answers your questions. Exit west, by mohsin hamid mohsin hamids new novel imagines a country, never specified, swollen with refugees from an ongoing conflict. Saeed and nadia, the two central characters in mohsin hamids fourth novel, exit west, meet at the beginning of the book, at a night class on corporate identity and product branding. The story focuses on the journey of two characters, saeed and nadia. The latest american library association ala book club central sjp pick, chosen by honorary book club central chair sarah jessica parker, is exit west by mohsin hamid, published by riverhead exit west has been shortlisted for the 2017 man booker prize, longlisted for the ala andrew carnegie medal for excellence in fiction and is a finalist for the 2017 kirkus prize. Steve inskeep talks to pakistani novelist mohsin hamid, who examines the global refugee crisis in a new novel called exit west. Discussion questions for exit west the new york times.
I highly enjoyed reading this novel and discussing it with mia. Literary fiction book club exit west by mohsin hamid. This superb small novel, at 2 pages almost qualifying as a novella, has all the features of an. Save over 20% credits will not expire, so you can use them at any time. Exit west author mohsin hamid answers your questions pbs. So begins mohsin hamids extraordinary new novel, exit west. Mar 06, 2017 steve inskeep talks to pakistani novelist mohsin hamid, who examines the global refugee crisis in a new novel called exit west. Mohsin hamids dynamic yet lapidary books have all explored the convulsive changes.
In a country on the brink of civil war, nadia and saeed meet. Exit west follows these remarkable characters as they emerge into an alien and uncertain future, struggling to hold on to each other, to their past, to the very sense of who they are. Mohsin hamids novel exit west depicts the refugee crisis. The main themes of the novel are emigration and refugee problems. Mar 17, 2017 mohsin hamids exit west is a disconcertingly timely novel, one about migration, refugees, terrorism, and the rise of jingoistic nativism in the west. Sarah jessica parker selects mohsin hamids exit west. Thurston clarkes honorable exit is a brilliant recounting of president gerald fords vital leadership during the last days of the vietnam war.
Join us to discuss this celebrated, awardwinning novel about a young couple who meet and fall in love as their city disintegrates into violence. Exit west has been shortlisted for the 2017 man booker prize, longlisted for the ala andrew carnegie medal for excellence in fiction and is a finalist. This astonishingly visionary love story that imagines the forces that drive ordinary people from their homes into the uncertain embrace of new lands won over sarah jessica parker, and were sure youll love it. Enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app. To ask other readers questions about exit west, please sign up.
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