Wow. This is a stunner. Women unraveling has been a trend in literature, but what Zaher does it next level. There are so many layers to this novel and I relished every one, even though some of this was quite difficult. I learned so much about history here as well through this unraveling.

A wealthy Palestinian woman commits various kinds of irresponsible acts. A very compelling voice. Recently a friend of mine said he loves reading novels where the narrator "has a take," and this narrator has a take. She's sort of unhinged and that makes the book very readable. I lost a little steam towards the end when the drama veers slightly out of the realist sphere and into something that makes for harder suspension of disbelief, but I enjoyed it to the end; the Birkin bag scheme thing was a real education, and there are specific lines in this narrator's confident, matter-of-fact voice that won't get out of my head ("I am always ready to fuck").

Delighted to include this title in the July edition of Novel Encounters, my column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for the Books section of Zoomer, Canada’s national lifestyle and culture magazine. (see column and mini-review at link)

Weird, unhinged and irreverently comical, The Coin takes it's reader on a wild ride centered around a woman searching for structure, inclusion and purity. Yasmin provides an intimate look at mental stability amidst societal expectations and uses the chaotic landscape of New York as a backdrop. You feel the decent into madness in both subject matter and writing style. As the book unfolds, so does the narrators delivery, only to tighten up in the conclusion, aiding in the reader's journey through madness.

There is a moment in the beginning of the book when she is providing one of the students some encouragement that sets the narrative up so well and ultimately proves how unreliable the narrator truly is:

"Sometimes we have to become independent of our families, not because we don't love them but because they weigh us down. My comment made him emotional, I felt that he wanted to cry, I changed the subject. You want to hear my secret to success Jay? I have very few belongings, I'm focused on myself, I am my own greatest asset. And you, too, you are smart, kind, handsome. You are your own greatest asset, Jay. You don't need anyone or anything else."

Ultimately, this advice is taken in her own life and we witness the desire for material comfort, status and the, at times, uncomfortable desire for acceptance and love from others to satiate her sexual longing. Ultimately none of these desires are unfit but it lays the stage for a questionable journey with our narrator.

I appreciated the comical delivery of a Palestinian's vantage point on American culture with quotes like: "I was scared of American culture. When I say that, I don't mean the right to bare arms, I mean the wedding dresses and obesity". This is so poignant and lyrical in execution that I had to stop and commend her. It encapsulates so many strange societal norms in American culture acutely and left me thinking more about how the rest of the world views us here in the United States.

I want to include one other quote from the book that just hit home in both delivery and weight. Our narrator is beginning her decent as she waits for the toilet amidst American women dressed in foreign materials. Her friend mentions that they stand with Israel, and her, a Palestinian woman, simply agrees, saying, "The more contradictions in your life, the more complex your identity, the harder your soul, the more difficult it is to love and be loved. I don't want to be with similar people, I continued, if you rub my knotted strings together, they don't solve into a beautiful braid, they just become a big ugly mess."

I think overall there is more to unpack here and I am going to be rereading this novel upon release but I was pleasantly surprised and feel this will become a staple in the "unhinged women" genre, one of my absolute favorites and belongs on many best of lists. Excited for this release and to read more from this new voice in the future!

"The Coin" by Palestinian author Yasmin Zaher, is an existential, madness-slipping, and surreal tale of a wealthy New York woman struggling to conform to the American culture. She finds a job teaching at an all boy middle school where she clashes to teach within the curriculum and quickly going rogue in her teaching methods. This quick paced story is anything dull! Be ready for a surreal ride through themes of: sexuality, madness, freedom, culture, and more.

Readers who love existential, dark, and surreal stories will love "The Coin".

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I gave this book four out of five stars because while I enjoyed the thinking it inspired about such themes of identity, culture, sexuality, and more; I didn't connect to the main character (the female narrator) and at times I found her/ the writing to be dispassionate (flat and angsty). But at the same time Zaher leaves the reader with a story that makes you think days after reading.

Thank you Catapult press for bringing this title to NetGalley, and thank you to author Yasmin Zaher for "The Coin".

The Coin is an intense, grotesque, well-written character study. I both hated it and was very interested to see how it would end. This felt like something Kafka would have written if he had been a Palestinian woman. The unnamed narrator is incredibly unlikeable. She is extremely wealthy but also teaches underprivileged students (but also not really because most of her classes involve wasting time though she claims she also does more somewhere...?)
I kept wondering what was bothering me so much about this narrator aside from the most glaring reasons, and I think it's about lack of accountability. This woman seems very mentally disturbed, but there isn't help or consequences for any of it.
I agree that whoever designed the cover is brilliant.
Thanks to NetGalley and Catapult for this ARC!

I just could not enter into the mind and the near-stream of consciousness of this first-person narrator, no matter how hard I tried. This youngish Palestinian woman, in NY, and somehow, despite a lack of degree, teaching at a school for underprivileged boys, a task she might take to heart but very much following her own internal curriculum, all the while meandering through the city, cleaning herself meticulously, having sex with a man she knows well, a plotless story though interesting observations are made in the book. But why I was reading her story, why her story matters, I still have no clue - her descent, or rather, her further descent into a mental and physical spiraling is unique to her, without much universality. What I did like was a character who very much goes her own way, but being in her head never provided me more than varying degrees of discomfort. The focus on cleanliness, on her ablutions that are extremely detailed, on her sexual activities, designed perhaps to shock the reader, and left this reader wondering if to shock was the only point, and to shock, without more, isn't sufficient.

Thanks to Catapult and Netgalley for the arc.

Perfect for readers who love stories about unhinged women unraveling. I was fascinated by the MC's behaviors, especially the recklessness with which she educated her students.

The Coin is a strange, fever dream of a novel. The narrator, a well-dressed, cleanliness-obsessed Palestinian immigrant living in New York City, uses unorthodox teaching methods to reach her students at a boys' academy. Then, she becomes embroiled in a scheme to acquire and resell Hermes Birkin handbags. When she has a breakdown, the reader is left to wonder, is any of it true? Well-written and mysterious, The Coin explores issues of identity, class, and belonging.

A Palestinian young woman moves from Haifa to New York to start over her life. On the outside she might seem like she is put together, however on the inside she is slowly unraveling. She befriends a homeless swindler, and together they engage in a Birkin bag pyramid scheme, highlighting the contrast between luxury and poverty. As she grapples with her identity, ideology, and existential struggles, her mental and physical health deteriorate, leading to a dramatic unraveling. The novel examines themes of materialism, class, and trauma, showcasing a provocative and original literary voice.

I loved this novel and I can't believe its a debut! The writing was so darkly funny and witty and although the narrator does some questionable things, you can't help but feel and care for her. This is perfect for lovers of weird and witty books a la Ottessa Moshfegh and Halle Butler! Thank you to the author, Catapult Publishers, and NetGalley for this arc in return for an honest review! The Coin comes out July 4th!

Woooof what a book this is. THE COIN is by Yasmin Zaher, a Palestinian author who writes about a Palestinian woman who emigrated to New York City for an easier life as a middle school teacher. She comes from money, with a brother sending her a large amount via check every month after their parents died in a car accident. She carries a Birkin, wears designer clothes, and is slowly unraveling. The book is a bit inaccessible and weird, and I can't say I loved reading it, but it was certainly an experience and one that will stay with me.

The book is presented as a stream of consciousness, which I think is why I found it inaccessible at times The protagonist is strange and has frustrating oddities and thoughts. She also makes bad decisions, including getting involved with a gay unhoused person who suckers her into a Birkin pyramid scheme. She doesn't seem to have a mind of her own, and we're not sure exactly why she's unraveling, but it's distressing none the less.

She is obsessed with being clean - clean of her past? Of her present? The writing is sharp and confident, but I either wanted more from the story, or an understanding that this was all a little over my head. Regardless, it's an important work by a Palestinian author which we need now more than ever.

I tried really hard to get into this one but it was just much too slow for me to follow along. I am still very thankful to the publisher, author, and Netgalley for granting me advanced reader access to this one before July 9, 2024.

I've read (and enjoyed) a good number of weird books- add this to the top of the weird list.

At some point, the narrator says to the reader something like, "No, this isn't a fever dream..." and I realized- that's exactly what this entire book feels like. A fever dream or someone telling me a story when they are extremely out of it without a care at all about whether they are making sense or causing concern to the listener.

Somehow, I finished it- was *I* in a fever dream? I don't know. Nothing was happening, and the vibes were off, but I didn't want to leave her. Like when you're sober and your friend is drunk, confusing and kind of insufferable, but you stay with her all night because she's still your friend and you want to make sure she's okay.

I wanted to love this. The premise sounds intriguing but it’s misleading. While the summary includes topics that are in the book, I don’t think they paint a good picture of this novel. This is a first-person stream of consciousness novel. Our main character is an immigrant from Palestine, who has suffered traumas and is now in New York City. She teaches at a school for underprivileged boys and I use the word teaching loosely. What we see on page is her taking extreme liberties with the curriculum and the kids and doing what she wants. Most of the time, it’s fine, but some of it I thought crossed the line. We see her dating life, her obsession with money and luxury items. There’s also an intense focus on cleanliness, specifically her body. We get intimate run downs of her shaving and bathing routines. I don’t know if I missed the point but I don’t really understand the message here. She does eventually get involved with someone and the Birkin bag scheme but also, not the main plot of the book. Was there a plot? Honestly, I don’t think so. She starts off odd and continues to descend into — I don’t know if madness is the word — but she gets worse. She was rarely a character I wanted to root for. There are some lines in the book that stood out to me and make excellent critique of society but overall, I didn’t enjoy this experience. I hope this novel resonates with someone but it didn’t work for me.

A complicated but beautiful book with a stunning character arc. I love a book about a morally ambiguous woman, and Yasmin Zaher really delivered with this one. I loved the main character’s evolution from germaphobic rich girl to her “return to nature”, and thought the narrative voice was expertly done. Very witty and very poignant, with great commentary on the state of our world, particularly NYC.

The Coin is a book of contradictions.
A young Palestinian woman lives in New York. She is obsessed with cleanliness, though despite her rigorous routines, she understands that she may never truly be clean. She’s obsessed with wealth, but knows what the items she purchases represent. That it is the wealthy who are the dirtiest of all.
We follow her as she attempts to create structure through her job teaching at an underprivileged boys school, instilling what she’s learned about class and race in them. Then, at night, she scrubs off her top layer of skin. When she meets a homeless man, he ropes her into a pyramid scheme of buying and selling Birkin bags. She has never been so close, and yet so distinctly far from the American dream.
I thought this was a sharp, deeply cutting novel, destined to become a cult classic, favored by those who adore disaffected narrators. I was entranced!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an early copy, in exchange for a review!

Wealth, filth, beauty, displacement, grief, oppression, obsession, (impeccable, hygiene), and loneliness…..are (ha), just a few words to associate with our Palestinian protagonist.

The Palestinian woman strives to put down roots in New York. She teaches at a private school for underprivileged boys where her eccentric methods cross boundaries. After becoming friends with a homeless impostor — they engage in a pyramid scheme reselling Birkin bags.

In many ways our unnamed protagonist was emotionally suffocating in America. She tried to find ways to gain more control over her life — her body — her mind ….
So….
….. “I did what I had to do. I began to throw things away, organize, and clean. This became a way of life. I could have paid someone to do it for me, the cleaning, but I couldn’t trust another woman with my home. I was afraid that she would throw out an important scrap of paper. It sounds dramatic, but I became a clean freak”.

“The Coin” should be read — if for no other reason than to deeply try and understand and experience what it must have been like for this Palestinian woman — living in America — who was essentially alone and lost ….yet doing everything in her power to overcome her insecurities — SHE DID WHAT SHE HAD TO DO.
Skin care cleaning was vital for our protagonist Washing her hair, scrubbing her feet, cleaning her ears, her nails, she never got into bed without showering.
Our protagonist was a pristine-fastidious-compulsively-obsessive clean woman. Cleanliness was of the upmost importance. She invested money, time, and attention to trying to keep up with the dirt that kept piling.

The story moves in several directions — (highlighting beauty, sexuality, and class).
Plan to read a couple of unusual-bizarre scenes. (a little odd but interesting).
Actually — I even found the title “The Coin” interesting.
…..Coins are a major archaeological source of history. They convey information about language,
administration, religion, and economic conditions….
….Coins become governmental authority ‘as money’.
Representing wealth and power —
So….
…..in Yasmin Zaher’s story we see symbolic parallels….to the history of coins through our protagonist.

There was a tad too much loofah scrubbing….in every nick & cranny of our main character….for my taste….but overall….’The Coin’ is a compelling wrought novel ….that strikes an original note!

Is a weird one. It reminds me of Moshfegh mixed with Anna Dorn/Broder maybe?

An orphaned Palestinian woman living in America, who has a multi million dollar inheritance but small weekly allowance, has an appetite for the finer things but surrounds herself in dirt.

There are some bizarre scenes in here: an obsession with her own filth, the idea that she's been carrying around a coin inside of her.

I was intrigued to see where it goes because I do like them weird. If you're someone who needs to feel like you understand what's going on or needs things to wrap up at the end, this is probably not the one for you. I'm still not sure I get what it was all about, what the point was, but there was a movement made internally in our MC and despite her attempts to galvanize the youth things still really end up fucked up and unchanged. As a Palestinian woman how little have things changed despite generations of history and will it carry forth in a never-ending continuous snake eating snake ouroboros.

Immediately arresting prose, precise yet expansive in surprising ways, kind of like if Fleur Jaeggy came to your dinner party and got slightly loaded. I loved every page of this, and if things break right I believe it could be as big a sensation as Otessa Moshfegh.

Whoever described this as a Palestinian Moshfegh had the right of it. Weird and uncomfortable and wobbly is the best way I can describe this. The narrator is unreliable as we all are midexperience -- it's only later with reflection that we're able to take stock and evaluate. I found this book difficult to read, not because it wasn't good, but because every one of the protagonist's experiences would have overwhelmed me as a single circumstance and cumulatively they began to feel actively burdensome, and on top of that, I actively disliked everyone in the book, though I went back and forth on the main character a couple times. I frequently had to step away and read other books before coming back to this.

That said: it may not have been an easy book, but it was a GOOD one. All of the angst of the current adult generations (excluding the Boomers) replete with cultural trauma, emotional mania, and sly anti-consumer fervour. Incredibly well written, in a way designed to make you despise everyone engaging in community in all the wrong ways, highlighting the uncomfortable truths we overlook daily to make peace with our preference for convenience over justice, be it ecological, social, economical, etc.