{"product_id":"the-angel-of-history-9780802127198","title":"The Angel of History","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePraise for \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner of the Northern California Book Award, the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction, and the Arab American Book Award for Fiction\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA \u003cem\u003eWashington Independent Review of Books\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLiterary Hub\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/em\u003e Best Book of the Year\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine, entrancing and unflinching, is in easy command of his bricolage narrative, and he leavens its tragedy with wit.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“An elegy for a lost generation of gay men [and] a structurally inventive bildungsroman . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e marks the triumph of memory over oblivion.”\u003cstrong\u003e —\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBookforum\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“The narrative spans every corner of the globe to reveal a razor-sharp mind in turmoil, reflecting a wider consciousness of the social unrest around him.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003cem\u003eHarper’s Bazaar\u003c\/em\u003e online\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e takes place in a single day, but it reads like an epic . . . a sprawling fever dream of a novel, by turns beautiful and horrifying, and impossible to forget . . . Alameddine is a writer with a boundless imagination . . . [his] writing is so beautiful, so exuberant . . . When Alameddine aims for the heart, he doesn’t miss, and he hits hard . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e isn’t just a brilliant novel, it’s a heartfelt cry in the dark, a reminder that we can never forget our past, the friends and family we’ve loved and lost. It’s a raw love letter from those who survived a plague to those who didn’t.” \u003cstrong\u003e—NPR.org\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“A remarkable novel, a commentary of love and death, creativity and spirituality, memory and survival . . . brilliant . . . [it] hits an emotional nerve.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLos Angeles Review of Books\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Excellent, lissome . . . the novel is a work of social and cultural memorialization . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e suggests that to be alienated—from past love and from the past itself—is to open the door to memory and creation . . . to read Alameddine’s prose is to see loss, if not mastered, then at least made into lively and living art.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSan Francisco Chronicle\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Laced with literary references . . . a kaleidoscopic storytelling style, and philosophical humor.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNew Yorker\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“A poignant act of remembering by one AIDS survivor to a new generation . . . an evocative religious and sexual elegiac with both dark and stirring comedy . . . a poetic combination of Mapplethorpean imagery and religious symbolism. It’s uncomfortable and enlightening; an experiment in merging the present with the past, in merging a gay life characterized by assimilation with a gay life celebratory of its deviancy. It dances between the ecstasy of sexual release and the ecstasy of religious rapture . . . an unforgettable novel. \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e is cathartic tale of outsiders and insiders and what’s lost in becoming each.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePopMatters\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“This is a story of one life and many themes: in this case, death and sex; religion; war; the purpose of art and of love and loss; and the need to remember. Here is a book, full of story, unrepentantly political at every level. At a time when many western writers seem to be in retreat from saying anything that could be construed as political, Alameddine says it all, shamelessly, gloriously.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGuardian\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine has created a scintillating, original work whose moral complexity and detail of observation are wholly contemporary and entirely his own.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSpectator\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine has beguiled us with his insight and compassion. His stories take the reader into the labyrinth that is the mind . . . presenting the existential drama of a single human life.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEconomist\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“A stylish gem constructed of love and loss. All of it forms a glorious excess of life, death, and haunting memory . . . Alameddine [is] a daring and perceptive storyteller.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBay Area Reporter\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Smart, impassioned . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e is Alameddine at his best . . . he’s becoming an indispensable writer.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eToronto Star Tribune\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“[Alameddine’s] colorful syntax, his unique paralleling of communities (homosexuals, Arabs) and his intertwining of religious, sexual and popular imagery feel both important and exciting.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMacleans\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“A character study of a brilliant but tormented soul.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeattle Times\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“While it is unflinching in its portrayal of sorrow, it also is wild, raucous, profane, sacred and uplifting.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDaily Kos\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine’s novel resists easy taxonomies. Its mobility and nimbleness make it difficult to pin down; its subversive strategy turns irony back upon irony. Most impressively, it paints a portrait of a man beset on all sides by powers well beyond his ken, who nonetheless absolutely refuses to capitulate. He is a Bartleby with a conscience, a Gregor Samsa with a purpose, a Plume with real guts.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWorld Literature Today\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e has cemented Alameddine as one of the leading queer novelists of our times, exploring outsiders in all their forms and resisting categorization.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMuftah\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“An unforgettable voice—erudite, ironic, profane.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNewsday\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Ingenious . . . a richly textured novel that is a remarkable feat of imagination and a cry to remember a condition that not only still affects much of America but continues to overwhelm countries in Africa, Asia and elsewhere. The lapel ribbons may be gone, but the pain remains.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHouston Chronicle\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Captivating . . . [these] remembrances of things past are delivered with insight, humanity and mordant wit.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMercury News\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Profound, brilliant . . . it offers insight into all the horrors and wonders associated with being that most otherworldly of beings: a human.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNylon\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Intricately woven . . . powerful . . . The language has a visceral edge to it . . . laden with meaning, symbolism and nostalgia . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e effectively tackles myriad themes pertinent to the day and age that we live in.”\u003cstrong\u003e —\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNew York Journal of Books\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Provocative, profound, and humorous.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLambda Literary\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Powerful . . . [a] majestically worldspanning narrative.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe National\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Storytelling at its finest, a fabulist tale that explores how we grieve and how we succeed and fail in confronting our most painful memories . . . Alameddine uses the structure of his novel—as Proust did—to recreate the impression of memory. \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e, with its fragmented, alternating, multiple points of view and multiple plots is a structural triumph.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNuméro Cinq\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine’s greatest strength is his euphonious and lyrical prose. It reads like poetry, every word selected with a jeweler’s precision. The words have a rhythm and flow beautifully from the author’s creative and agile mind. The author’s signature erudition is displayed beautifully here with classical, religious, and artistic references that serve to inform and illustrate, and are never pedantic. All of these skilled devices serve to bring us a compelling tale of a complex man’s inner life and the loss and grief brought about by the AIDS crisis at its height.”\u003cstrong\u003e —\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA\u0026amp;U Magazine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“In the spirit of Mikhail Bulgakov’s satirical masterpiece \u003cem\u003eThe Master and Margarita\u003c\/em\u003e, Rabih Alameddine conjures an elegiac comedy with aplomb, his incantations rich with sincerity and irreverence . . . Alameddine is an entrancing storyteller, imbuing the quotidian with magnificence and undermining solemnity with sauciness . . . \u003cem\u003eThe Angel of History\u003c\/em\u003e is outstanding, a novel that leaves a lasting mark.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“How does the mind grapple with transition, change, loneliness, and deterioration? Alameddine’s body of work is an extended meditation on this central question . . . With humor and wit, Alameddine reconfigures the self in exile and all its implications.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003cem\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/em\u003e (starred review)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine brilliantly captures [the protagonist] Jacob’s mind as it leaps between memory and the present.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“In this provocative portrait of a man in crisis, masterful storyteller Alameddine takes on some of the most wrenching conflicts of the day.”\u003cstrong\u003e —\u003cem\u003eBooklist\u003c\/em\u003e (starred review)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Alameddine is excellent at weaving literary references into his storytelling . . . A feverish portrait of a mind in crisis.” \u003cstrong\u003e—\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“There are many ways to break someone’s heart, but Rabih Alameddine is one rare writer who not only breaks our hearts but gives every broken piece a new life.” \u003cstrong\u003e—Yiyun Li\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Rabih Alameddine is a writer of conscience, of self-consciousness, of subconsciousness, of the great big global unconscious.” \u003cstrong\u003e—Amy Tan\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Rabih Alameddine is one of our most daring writers—daring not in the cheap sense of lurid or racy, but as a surgeon, a philosopher, an explorer, or a dancer.” \u003cstrong\u003e—Michael Chabon\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Grove Atlantic, Inc.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51359187272023,"sku":"9780802127198","price":11.39,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780802127198.jpg?v=1754123925","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-angel-of-history-9780802127198","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}