Ghost Season - Fatin Abbas

#book by Fatin Abbas (teaching the short story writing class I'm taking fall 2024!)

(note: potential for some spoilers in here)

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War. Love. Hate. These are all sources of blindness.

All sources that we've seen used as tropes over and over again. But for some reason, this story was especially satisfying, and new. And necessary. It reminds us that, the west and the east aren't the only things out there. There's also the middle. Africa. Conflict that we're able to ignore because we don't see it.

But these people are as real as any (even though Fatin's characters might not be).

• Human nature and are we more ourselves when we're animals?
• Good things come to good people. But sometimes, bad things do as well.

Factional division. Climate change. Power dynamics. The

Rating stuff

• I liked it overall. I was drawn into the characters. The characters were all so fully developed and human. Relatable and flawed.
  • Though I wish Layla was fleshed out a bit more. She seemed like just "pretty, caring, lady"
  • And I wish we got to see more of Dena's past. Who was she in college? Who was she at home? Who were her friends?

Other thoughts/observations

• They really like white (motif?)
  • The clean white shirt that William always wears, and now Mustafa is wearing at the wedding.
• I can feel this sort of hope/longing that Alex and Dena get together.
  • But consciously, I don't want that to happen. Subconsciously... brains are so stupid