- Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa
Rating- 3/5
This was an entirely different book from what I regularly read. The concept was unique and haunting.
The central story is about objects disappearing in an unknown village in an unknown island enforced by the memory police. Small things like photographs, roses, perfume even body parts disappear overnight. But they don’t disappear magically or through some scientific means.
The unnamed narrator is a novelist who encounters these disappearances like all other people. She feels uneasy about this occurrence but never resists.
I had to read the book twice to understand what the core story was. Through disappearance the memory police subverts culture, hide emotions, limits language. Authoritarian suppression and controlling resistance is how memory police strives.
As the story progresses people lose their voice and limbs. Not literally but they are forced not to use them by the memory police.
What bothered me was that there was no logical explanation why and how these occurrences were happening. What was the end game? The only thing I concluded was that the readers need to understand the deeper context and metaphors behind the story. The story is less about plot and more about various themes like state control, history control, lack of freedom of speech etc.
This is one of the difficult books I have read. Won’t recommend to anyone who wants to have a fun time reading. ITS NOT A PAGE TURNER AT ALL.
- My Friends by Hisham Matar
Rating- 3.5/5
Another difficult read for me that slowed down my reading momentum in April.
My Friends follows a trio of Libyan friends who meet in London, each shaped by different ambitions, political beliefs, and ways of seeing the world. A defining moment comes when they take part in a protest outside the Libyan embassy and are shot at an event that changes the course of all their lives.
One is forced into exile, unable to return home but constantly longing for it. Another goes back and joins the resistance against the regime. The third becomes involved in Libyan politics. Set against the backdrop of the Arab Spring, the novel explores how their friendship evolves, drifts apart, and reconnects over time.
At its core, it’s the story of a man who spends decades away from his homeland, belonging neither fully to Britain nor to Libya. It’s slow-paced and, at times, feels dull but also thoughtful and beautifully written.