Gorgeous, lyrical ... Examines with a poet’s precision the many ways in which storytelling is rooted in matriarchy, carrying messages between mothers and daughters as a means of survival ... In such scenes of compelling intimacy, the author’s narrative gifts shine through, the brief fragments making for quick, propulsive reading. At times, however, the collagelike structure threatens to disrupt the gravity of any one passage, with so many descriptions of the author’s prophetic dreams in the latter chapters that it’s difficult for a single narrative thread to cohere in the end. But perhaps this multiplicity of stories and selves is exactly what Alyan intends ... Shows the power of even a single narrative to resist the deliberate erasure of a people and their homeland, the violence of colonization.
Poignant ... Her poetic background resonates throughout the memoir, with fluid prose that conveys her desperate longing to become a mother ... In a stunning kaleidoscope of vignettes, she narrates scenes from her own life and those of her family ... Her background as a clinical psychologist is evident in her insightful analysis of the human psyche. She tears apart the myths and facades we carry about ourselves to expose the raw emotions underneath. She reveals the universal nature of human experience, making us feel inextricably connected to her ... A moving tribute to the strength of those forced from their homelands and ruthlessly exploited, as well as a celebration of women’s determination to survive and thrive despite violence and oppression.
An emotion-packed exploration of the impact of loss on identity ... Rather than a straightforward memoir, Alyan relates her story like journal entries, transitioning back and forth between time and place, offering small windows into her unique view of the world and creating an intimate experience for the reader.
Erudite if opaque ... Throughout, the author deliberately blurs the personal and the political, reflecting on her maternal anxieties as she details familial and systemic dysfunction. Her consistent rejection of linear narrative and deliberate withholding of concrete biographical details, while artistically admirable, often proves more frustrating than edifying. It’s a lyrical and uncompromising personal history—sometimes to a fault.
