E. Lily Yu

The haunting story of a family of dreamers and tale-tellers looking for home in an unwelcoming world. This exquisite and unusual magic realist debut, told in intensely lyrical prose by an award winning author, traces one girl’s migration from war to peace, loss to loss, home to home. Firuzeh and her brother Nour are children of fire, born in an Afghanistan fractured by war. When their parents, their Atay and Abay, decide to leave, they spin fairy tales of their destination, the mythical land and opportunities of Australia. As the family journeys from Pakistan to Indonesia to Nauru, heading toward a hope of home, they must rely on fragile and temporary shelters, strangers both mercenary and kind, and friends who vanish as quickly as they’re found. When they arrive in Australia, what seemed like a stable shore gives way to treacherous currents. Neighbors, classmates, and the government seek their own ends, indifferent to the family’s fate. For Firuzeh, her fantasy worlds provide some relief, but as her family and home splinter, she must surface from these imaginings and find a new way.

On Fragile Waves

Jennifer

Due to my long book backlist, it's been a while since I've last finished a book with days after its publication date. So I was really that glad I get to read On Fragile Waves in the last few days. This is a heartbreaking & poetic magic realism piece about an Afghan family escaping from war and finding new opportunities in Australia. With a unique writing style as well as careful research, E. Lily Yu painted a beautiful dreamscape that conveys both excellent storytelling as well as the undercurrents which shape / splinter the family.

Beautiful moments in On Fragile Waves are abundant and this is shown from the writing style. I have so many quotes highlighted on my iPad because the proses breathe life and are so gorgeous. To mention a few quotes I absolutely love:

"Moonlight washed the gnawed coral pinnacles, frosted the skeletal phosphate cranes, and drenched the canvas tents where a hundred dreamers dreamed gray, grim, and miserable dreams."

"There's something about beginnings and endings. That polishes them so smooth you can nearly see your face in them."

"Home is where you're safe, but sometimes it's not safe. Sometimes it's not yours, but you can shut your eyes and pretend it is."

"I was a daughter-shaped space in the universe."

Quotes like this demonstrated superb word-painting which brings the characters and settings alive. These proses conveyed the tragic experience of refugees seeking a stable home in a Australia, as well as the societal expectations of growing up. While the family suffered as they escaped the war, small & beautiful moments of storytelling was a welcoming relief. The stories that Firuzeh and Nour shared with each other during the times of hardship organically fleshes out the Afghan culture. These stories also have a tint of hopefulness as each of them seeks out the narratives throughout the novel. I'm particularly touched by Firuzeh's narrative of coming of age. So the writing left a lot of impression and emotional impact on me. It's thought-provoking and heartbreaking all the same.

While I love the writing style, there are a few minor concerns I had with On Fragile Waves. For instance, the spoken sections aren't embedded with quotation marks which can be difficult to follow. I don't think this is a big issue because these chapters are trying to convey finding a relief from the turbulent currents outside, through the storytelling & the fantasy worlds. I also think the multiple POV's was another part which initially threw me off, but as I crunched through the novel I realised how these additional POV's provided the context of the social dynamics in Australia and how the neighbours treated the family members. So I found these sections succinct and yet very well researched.

To sum it up, On Fragile Waves is a beautifully heartbreaking and thought-provoking body of work with excellent storytelling. I would highly recommend this to anyone who's into magic realism.

Rina

This was a haunting, sad tale of immigration that I enjoyed and appreciated a lot. It did take me quite a while to get acquainted with the prose though as I progressed I thought it complimented the story well, so did the touch of magical realism. I love the characters, how each one’s flaws and strengths stood out. I found the story to be incredibly heartfelt, and real.

Kirsten Maliepaard

First of all, I want to say I am so thankful for getting the opportunity to read this ARC. It was a lovely experience.

Firuzeh and her younger brother have to leave Afghanistan with their parents, due to the ongoing war. Their goal is to seek safety in Australia, but they have a long journey ahead. Losing friends just as fast as they had found them.

When I started reading this book I thought that the writing style was a bit odd. Not exactly my thing, but I have to say I got used to it pretty quickly.

It is a very fast-moving story and a quick read, but it is such a heavy topic. Even though it is a heavy topic it is written in a way that doesn't make it heavy to read. You just want to keep reading to know what is going to happen to them. It is told in a lighthearted way, with still the same impact. It shows the struggle immigrants have to go to. I did shed some tears.

Firuzeh grows so much as a character in just these few pages. At first, she is this little girl who does not understand her parents and their choices. But in the end, she is so much more mature.

Overall, a lovely read, and would definitely recommend this story.

Ben Nathan

Not my type of story at all, but still very good. Relatable characters with depth of emotion makes the whole thing go. The writing was so good that it felt like the punctuation was a character in and of itself. An easy one to suggest and a quick, but deep, read.

On Fragile Waves

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