Why read What Strange Paradise?

Book cover of What Strange Paradise

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'Deserves to be an instant classic. I haven't loved a book this much in a long time . . . What Strange Paradise . . . reads as a parable for our times . . . Such beautiful writing . . . This is an extraordinary book.' - New York…

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Why read it?

1 author picked What Strange Paradise as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Ellen Schwartz

Author

Bodies have washed up on the shores of a small island.

Another overfilled, ill-equipped, dilapidated ship has sunk under the weight of its too many passengers: Syrians, Ethiopians, Egyptians, Lebanese, Palestinians, all of them desperate to escape untenable lives back in their homelands. Only nine-year-old Amir has survived the passage.

He is rescued by Vanna, a teenage island resident who is determined to do whatever it takes to save Amir. At times I recoiled in horror at humanity’s cruelty and indifference. At other times I rejoiced in an example of empathy and hope.

From Ellen's 3 favorite reads in 2023.