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A review by shoutaboutbooks
The Giant Dark by Sarvat Hasin
5.0
*THIS IS MY INITIAL POST - I WILL SUBMIT A FULL REVIEW WHEN I CAN REREAD MY BEAUTIFUL NEW HB COPY*
Somehow I managed to find myself with just two days to read this one amongst the host of other projects currently competing for my time. But I did some desperate fighting-sleep-forcing-my-eyes-to-stay-open late night reading sessions and managed to read it before it was archived. Although that's meant I've not retained most of it, I knew very early on that this was going to be a standout of the year for me and about halfway through I broke my book buying ban to splurge on this beautiful signed edition. So...
FROM THE BLURB:
...After a decade of silence, Aida and Ehsan reconnect, hoping to recreate the love they shared in their youth. When Ehsan's life unravels, he follows Aida on tour, but it becomes clear that their connection is strained by secrets and jealousies. The past blurs with the present as they follow in the footsteps of mythic lovers before them.
The Giant Dark is a loose retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, exploring the consuming and devastating effects of using a lover as a muse.
~
That's right folks, (technically) this is another Greek myth retelling which I really am powerless to at this point, BUT it's also one of the richest poetic literary novels I've read this year. Early on, the beautiful lyricism of Hasin's prose brought to mind Open Water and the deep sentimentality that settles into the reflections of their relationship made me feel a similar nostalgia as when I read Normal People last year.
The ending is more difficult to make comparisons with, but the psychological manifestations of grief and the journeys into despair bore resemblance to the original myth while managing to be an entirely unique interpretation.
PLEASE READ!
Somehow I managed to find myself with just two days to read this one amongst the host of other projects currently competing for my time. But I did some desperate fighting-sleep-forcing-my-eyes-to-stay-open late night reading sessions and managed to read it before it was archived. Although that's meant I've not retained most of it, I knew very early on that this was going to be a standout of the year for me and about halfway through I broke my book buying ban to splurge on this beautiful signed edition. So...
FROM THE BLURB:
...After a decade of silence, Aida and Ehsan reconnect, hoping to recreate the love they shared in their youth. When Ehsan's life unravels, he follows Aida on tour, but it becomes clear that their connection is strained by secrets and jealousies. The past blurs with the present as they follow in the footsteps of mythic lovers before them.
The Giant Dark is a loose retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, exploring the consuming and devastating effects of using a lover as a muse.
~
That's right folks, (technically) this is another Greek myth retelling which I really am powerless to at this point, BUT it's also one of the richest poetic literary novels I've read this year. Early on, the beautiful lyricism of Hasin's prose brought to mind Open Water and the deep sentimentality that settles into the reflections of their relationship made me feel a similar nostalgia as when I read Normal People last year.
The ending is more difficult to make comparisons with, but the psychological manifestations of grief and the journeys into despair bore resemblance to the original myth while managing to be an entirely unique interpretation.
PLEASE READ!