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Member Reviews

Dealing with the Dead by Alain Mabanckou is the story of Liwa as he literally wakes up dead. We follow him as he journeys around the cemetery and back to Ponte Noire for revenge for his death.

This novel is well written, with occasional funny bits, and is clearly steeped in the history and culture of Congo. As Liwa comes to each new person and scene, we can see the setting so clearly, taste the food, learn about the political situation, discover biases toward other areas of Congo or neighboring countries, experience death and burial customs, and more. There is a lot here for a relatively short novel.

Unfortunately, this just wasn’t for me, although I do typically like stories about cultures other than my own. I just couldn’t stay interested in Liwa, and couldn’t find much purpose to his roaming around. The changing narrative structure made it confusing, which did not help my interest level.

Thank you to NetGalley and The New Press for the eARC.

2.5 rounded to 3 stars

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This was such a fascinating perspective of Congolese life, especially in regards to death and the traditions/superstitions surrounding it. The narration, which was often a series of storytelling which is told in the second-person "you" perspective, was entertaining and at times impactful. Most of the characters were memorable, especially major figures like Ma Lembe, and the descriptions of the characters and the setting were always beautiful. It was interesting hearing from the perspective of the dead, and what their worries were prior to death as well as the legacy that they left behind or their regrets.

The depiction of the Congolese cultural and political workings, which I had very minimal knowledge of prior to reading this novel, was also very interesting to learn about, and it impacts the story in ways that I was not expecting. The only drawback to this novel is that the middle felt slow in comparison to the beginning and the end, both in a narration sense as well as some of the stories told not feeling as impactful (to me at least), but it definitely picked up towards the end. Overall I enjoyed this novel and I was satisfied with the ending! I recommend this if you are interested in magical realism, Congolese culture, politics, or reading from the perspective of the deceased.

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This book is a tough read. It reminds me of Pedro Páramo in it's almost surrealist manner. It is hard to follow at first but if you just let it flow over you, it makes sense. I did enjoy it and will recommend it to readers that enjoy this type of literture. For me it is a 3.5 stars but this could easily be much higher for any one else.

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