Martyr by Kaveh Akbar
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Web ID: 17868254I enjoyed the latter part of the book
I wasn’t as blown away by this book as I expected to be, based on its hype. First, I found it difficult to get into the story, finding the beginning to be disjointed and less than compelling. I actually didn’t start to like it until the main character, Cyrus, goes to New York to meet with a dying woman who’s dying is a form of performance art at a Brooklyn museum. The conversations Cyrus has with the woman and ultimate revelations are the most interesting parts of the book. For the most part, the rest is superfluous. Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy of the book to read for free. My opinion is voluntary.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A Poetic Journey
Martyr by Kaveh Akbar is a literary journey that masterfully weaves the past, present, and imagination into a seamless narrative. The author’s ability to blur the lines between reality and fiction creates an immersive experience, leaving the reader questioning where one ends and the other begins. Structured like a puzzle, the story gradually reveals its full picture in a way that feels both surprising and inevitable. Akbar’s language is exquisite, offering a taste of Persian literary traditions to readers unfamiliar with them, while drawing them into its emotional depth and poetic cadence. Martyr is a uniquely compelling read that lingers in the mind long after the final page.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
One of my all time favorites
A darkly humorous, profoundly moving, coming of age story. I couldn’t put it down.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Life changing
This book changed my life. It felt like Akbar wrote this from my very heart.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
New Favorite Author
The poetic language drew me in from the first page, and as soon as I reached the end, I was ready to start over again.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A stunning. sharply funny debut
What if I told you that a novel called Martyr! about a young Iranian immigrant, recovering addict, and aspiring poet meeting an artist in residence dying of cancer was one of the funniest, most life affirming novels I’ve read in years? Kaveh Akbar’s debut combines confident prose with a keen insight into the stories we tell ourselves. The crucial ingredient in all of this is Kaveh’s wicked sense of humor, bringing joy and wonder into the darkest aspects of the character’s lives. Lauded by writers such as Tommy Orange and John Green, this is a beautiful first novel about family, art, and being true to oneself.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Wow!
How do you describe such a stunning novel in just a few sentences? You can’t you just need to read it! This book is gut wrenching, funny, inspiring, desperate and hopeful. Peppered with pearls of wisdom throughout this powerful story it is a must read.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Couldn't put this down
“I want to be worthy of the great terror my existence inspires.” This book left me absolutely breathless. 72 hours after finishing it, I’m still suffering from the hangover of how much I loved it. Martyr! follows Cyrus, a yet-to-be-discovered Iranian American poet, as he tries to make sense of his life and his grief. His mother is dead, his father is dead, he’s stuck in a job as a medical actor, and now that he’s sober, he can’t use substances to take the edge off. He’s starting to wonder whether joy is even real anymore when he’s struck by his next great idea: he’ll write a book about martyrs. As he begins searching the world for examples, a friend tells him about a museum exhibit: an Iranian woman, dying of cancer, spending her last days in the museum, talking to people. And thus begins Cyrus’s search for meaning. Being familiar with Akbar’s poetry, I thought I knew what I was getting myself into when I cracked this book open. The goosebumps that peppered my arms and tears that crawled down my face while I was reading would suggest otherwise. Akbar’s lyricism effortlessly echoes through every line of this book. Martyr! illustrates the power and the insufficiency of language, the way it can both elucidate and obscure. Beyond the prose, Akbar’s fiction debut tackles a wide range of topics: grief, racism, sexuality, family dynamics, Persian culture, gender roles. Martyr!’s characters leap off the page as Akbar employs them to explore these diverse subjects. With alternating POVs between Cyrus, his mother, his father, and his uncle, this book becomes both a captivating character study and a heart-rending family saga. This is another must-read recommendation for my diverse lit-fic lovers! Thank you, Kaveh, for such beautiful polysexual and sapphic representation and for everything I learned about Persian culture. I’m already planning to reread Martyr! later this year 🌻 Run, don’t walk, to pick up a copy of this amazing new book! You can follow me on Instagram, Goodreads, or StoryGraph @bisexualbookshelf for more book reviews!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com