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The Arsonists' City
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
27 posts | 14 read | 30 to read
The Arsonists City delivers all the pleasures of a good old-fashioned saga, but in Alyans hands, one familys tale becomes the story of a nationLebanon and Syria, yes, but also the United States. Its the kind of book we are lucky to have.Rumaan Alam A rich family story, a personal look at the legacy of war in the Middle East, and an indelible rendering of how we hold on to the people and places we call home The Nasr family is spread across the globeBeirut, Brooklyn, Austin, the California desert. A Syrian mother, a Lebanese father, and three American children: all have lived a life of migration. Still, theyve always had their ancestral home in Beiruta constant touchstoneand the complicated, messy family love that binds them. But following his father's recent death, Idris, the family's new patriarch, has decided to sell. The decision brings the family to Beirut, where everyone unites against Idris in a fight to save the house. They all have secretslost loves, bitter jealousies, abandoned passions, deep-set shamethat distance has helped smother. But in a city smoldering with the legacy of war, an ongoing flow of refugees, religious tension, and political protest, those secrets ignite, imperiling the fragile ties that hold this family together. In a novel teeming with wisdom, warmth, and characters born of remarkable human insight, award-winning author Hala Alyan shows us again that fiction is often the best filter for the real world around us (NPR).
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GatheringBooks
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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#HumbleHarvest Day 27: An epic story of a #Family displaced across various countries and the secrets they keep. This was supposed to be our #EmiratesLiteratureFoundation book club pick for December - but it has been changed to Salt Houses instead by same author. 💕

Eggs Lovely 🥰 📚☕️ 4mo
50 likes1 comment
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GatheringBooks
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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#HumbleHarvest Day 14: Straw #Berries in this cheesecake from Olive Garden during our Sunday lunch in Orlando. Now back in sleepy quaint Al Ain. 🍓🍓🍓

Ladygodiva7 Yumm!! 4mo
Eggs Looks delicious 🤤 4mo
55 likes3 comments
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GatheringBooks
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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#HumbleHarvest Day 12: For our final day in the deep South of America, we just had to make one last visit to Olive Garden with the unlimited #Bread sticks. 💕 Paired with the book of the month (December) for the Emirates Lit Foundation bookclub. 💕

BookNAround I have this one on my list because I quite liked Alyan‘s The Salt Houses. 4mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks They are so delicious 😋 🥖 4mo
47 likes2 comments
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bookandbedandtea
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

Reading at the airport. 😊
This is a sweeping family saga set in Beirut, Damascus, Brooklyn, Austin, and Blythe CA. The 5 members of the Nasr family have complicated relationships and lots of secrets. They're all fairly unlikable but I ended up loving them and their story.

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Monica5
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
Pickpick

A soft pick for me. I liked the multiple POV's, family drama and little secrets kept from each other. Reason for a soft pick is it's multi generational and the kids parts seemed to get bogged down. I think because their chapters were so long. It would have been better, if she would have made their chapters into more or even shortened them.

#AwesomeApril @Andrew65 Book 2 finished
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 12mo
Andrew65 Well done 👏👏👏 I hate books where the chapters are too long, or where there aren‘t any chapters. They do seem to make the book drag. 12mo
Monica5 @Andrew65 yes! 12mo
18 likes3 comments
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Monica5
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Book ✔️
Hot Tea ✔️

Decided to set outside this morning. Hoping to finish this book today 😊

17 likes1 stack add
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Monica5
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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'TONIGHT THE MAN will die.'

#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl

dabbe That sentence got my attention! 😲 12mo
Monica5 Mine, too, when I first read it 😊 12mo
15 likes2 comments
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readswellwithothers
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

5⭐️ An extraordinary pick if you enjoy: •multiple POV (of characters you‘ll become quite attached to) •dual timelines (not jarring in their alternations) •a foreign setting (Palestine, Beirut) •family saga (spouse/sibling/parent-child, the whole kit and caboodle!) •medium pacing (settle in, let things unfold, invest). Humans are complex and complicated and I do adore a book that places me firmly into the hearts and minds of characters like these!

Megabooks Oh this makes me feel so good about having picked this one up! 1y
11 likes1 stack add1 comment
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suvata
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

#MMDBookClub book club pick for October 2022

A family story, a personal look at the legacy of war in the Middle East, and an indelible rendering of how we hold on to the people and places we call home The Nasr family is spread across the globe—Beirut, Brooklyn, Austin, the California desert. A Syrian mother, a Lebanese father, and three American children: all have lived a life of migration. Still, they always had their ancestral home in Beirut.

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suvata
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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I like to listen and read at the same time.
#kindle #scribd #booklyapp #mmdbookclub #bookstagram

Allylu Oooh! I‘m in MMDbookclub, too. Where do you listen to your books? 1y
suvata @Allylu I have the Scribd app. It‘s amazing how many great audiobooks I get for $12 a month. No limits to how many you can borrow. 1y
Erinsuereads Holy moly that would scramble my brain 1y
See All 12 Comments
suvata @ErinSueMreads Mine is already scrambled, so … 🙃 1y
Erinsuereads 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 1y
Allylu @suvata I like reading with my eyes and my ears, too. 1y
tpixie I especially like to do this on Books I‘m having a hard time focusing on when I‘m just doing one or the other. 1y
tpixie Do you have a kindle oasis? I have a Kindle Paperwhite, which is great to read at night for my eyes. But I so much prefer how more responsive reading on my phone Kindle app is when it comes to highlighting and access to google when I want to research more. I‘m wondering how the Kindle oasis is on the eyes and whether it‘s quicker when you highlight it and whether you can search Google on it. 1y
suvata @tpixie I used to have a Paperwhite but I gave it to my husband and upgraded to the Oasis. I think the Oasis is much easier on my eyes, it is lighter and smaller also. But, it is rather expensive compared to the Paperwhite. 1y
tpixie @suvata thanks for info. How is the highlighting? Is it faster than the paper white? And can you Google the Internet on it if you have Wi-Fi? 1y
suvata @tpixie Highlighting is very quick but it only comes out and gray. I have a Wi-Fi version and never try to Google anything because the Internet is pretty slow on the Kindle. 1y
tpixie @suvata thanks! The new Kindle oasis just came out and I‘m tempted to upgrade … 1y
47 likes12 comments
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Bookwormjillk
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

This was a good family drama set at various times in Syria, Lebanon, and America. It would have been great if not for all the backstory. #ReadingAsia2021

Librarybelle Looks interesting! 3y
57 likes1 comment
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Bookwormjillk
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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I was audio walking and admiring this cloud when I realized I hadn‘t posted a #BFC21 update in months. I‘m still trucking with the goals I set at the beginning of the year- eating more vegetables and trying to get a blackout on #BookspinBingo

Summer makes it easier!

wanderinglynn Way to go! 🙌🏻 3y
54 likes1 comment
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EliNeedsMoreShelves
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Current audio - really loving all the complex family relationships here.

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Mitch
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

A multi generational story - where the socio political situation of Palestinian is both backdrop & glue to the story. Everyone hordes secrets & the past refuses to be contained, it infuses every characters present. The novel takes place mainly in Beirut - the city boils with anxiety, tensions of violence and the complexities of assimilation, it oozes both homeliness and despair whilst the sea absorbs waste and the city goes dark every night.

65 likes1 stack add
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Mitch
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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For the first time this year - reading in the garden 💕

LeslieO Lovely! 3y
Suet624 Ahhhh... lovely. 3y
60 likes3 comments
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brandierickson
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

This book made me so anxious in the best way possible. I loved it. Apparently intergenerational family stories are my wheelhouse.

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amdsarahjenkins
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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My current read. Can‘t wait to get started with this one.

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Mitch
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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The tagged looks great - I‘m a sucker for a cross generational saga

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-lists/12-most-addictive-books-2021-so-far/hic...

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cathysaid
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

While there are a few minor weaknesses, overall this was an engrossing family saga spanning several decades and locales including California, Damascus and Beirut. Love, loss, familial loyalty and personal ambition all converge to make this a thoroughly engaging and pleasurable read. 4/5 ⭐️

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cathysaid
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Nevermind that my TBR is over one hundred books. If one goes into the library to renew a library card, one can‘t possibly be expected to leave without any beauties...can they!!?! #LitsyLovesLibraries #WhatTBR

EvieBee Okay, that 🍸 looks soooo good!!! 3y
Tamra Pish Posh, never mind about a TBR. 😉 3y
cathysaid @EvieBee Extra dirty because otherwise what‘s the point? 3y
cathysaid @Tamra Right? I 99% believe that 😂 3y
51 likes4 comments
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CindiB
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
Pickpick

A novel about immigration, moving, surviving, hiding, and letting go. This will go onto my reread shelf. Because it is that good. Because there are nuances I missed-maybe. After the first chapter, the next 3 slowed and changed direction. I continued, but I was bored and what did I miss as a result? (Was it simply over-hyped?) Not everything is answered in this novel; the layers are too thick. But perhaps I missed more than I think. 4/5

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Read_By_Red
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

One of the things I really like about this novel is the structure, alternating between the present and the past. Alyan gives you just enough about the present so you can form an opinion and perception regarding the events, but then the events shift to the past, affecting those opinions about the people and circumstances, only for the narrative to jump forward and mold those opinions all over again.

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Lauren.Archer
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

If you love epic family stories, this book will fit the bill, providing all the emotions that you would expect from this type of story. It felt completely genuine throughout and all I wanted was to spend a little more time with these characters.

Chelsea.Poole Added! I love epic family stories! 3y
71 likes5 stack adds1 comment
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Well-ReadNeck
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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40 likes2 stack adds
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Cinfhen
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Mehso-so

Mixed feelings - told in dual timelines the story set in #Lebanon 1970‘s was really engaging. Immersive in history, culture, foods and conflict, the story of Idris & Mazna. The parts that focus on their three grown children were long winded, cliche and dull. Even when the family reunites in present day Beirut the actions surrounding them all were tiresome and predictable. Book needed better editing. #BorrowNotBuy #ARC #ReadingAsia21

Librarybelle Gorgeous flowers! 3y
Cinfhen Thanks @Librarybelle 🧡💛 3y
81 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Cinfhen
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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#NetGalley #ARC #ReadingAsia21 #Lebanon Publishes Tuesday♥️So far, it‘s very engaging- Ava an Arab American is drawn back to Beirut to help sell her grandfather‘s ancestral home.

BarbaraBB Nice to have an ARC that fits a prompt! 3y
Cinfhen Right?!?? I was so excited @BarbaraBB (edited) 3y
Librarybelle Great!! I‘m curious to hear what you think of this one. 3y
See All 6 Comments
squirrelbrain Sounds great so far! 3y
Well-ReadNeck I loooooooved this book! 3y
Cinfhen I really liked the 1970‘s timeline but I wasn‘t a fan of the modern day storyline with the 3 grown children... it felt overly drawn out @Well-ReadNeck but I‘m so glad it worked for you!! 3y
99 likes1 stack add6 comments
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Well-ReadNeck
The Arsonists' City | Hala Alyan
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Pickpick

Yaaaaaaasssss! OMG, y‘all!

I adored this novel. A beautiful family saga that lets you sink into its world. The characters are flawed and tragic and I was rooting for each of them. This will absolutely be one of my favorite reads of the year.

#ARC #netgalley

71 likes4 stack adds