Name: madina's review of Open City by Teju Cole
Item: Open City
Rating: 4
Author: madina

Teju Cole

A New York Times Notable Book • One of the ten top novels of the year —Time and NPR NAMED A BEST BOOK ON MORE THAN TWENTY END-OF-THE-YEAR LISTS, INCLUDING The New Yorker • The Atlantic • The Economist • Newsweek/The Daily Beast • The New Republic • New York Daily News • Los Angeles Times • The Boston Globe • The Seattle Times • Minneapolis Star Tribune • GQ • Salon • Slate • New York magazine • The Week • The Kansas City Star • Kirkus Reviews A haunting novel about identity, dislocation, and history, Teju Cole’s Open City is a profound work by an important new author who has much to say about our country and our world. Along the streets of Manhattan, a young Nigerian doctor named Julius wanders, reflecting on his relationships, his recent breakup with his girlfriend, his present, his past. He encounters people from different cultures and classes who will provide insight on his journey—which takes him to Brussels, to the Nigeria of his youth, and into the most unrecognizable facets of his own soul. “[A] prismatic debut . . . beautiful, subtle, [and] original.”—The New Yorker “A psychological hand grenade.”—The Atlantic “Magnificent . . . a remarkably resonant feat of prose.”—The Seattle Times “A precise and poetic meditation on love, race, identity, friendship, memory, [and] dislocation.”—The Economist

A Novel

Open City

madina

fuckin love the pretentious asshole white guy archetype (think lou reed) transposed into a poc/immigrant character. honestly i'd read a flaneur character walking around new york for 1000 pages if i'm given the chance to

Patricia K

this book both felt like an enjoyable textbook of someone else's thoughts and something else. i have quite a few irks about julius but damn if he doesn't feel real. damn if he couldn't be actually someone breathing and existing in nyc rn. i found snippets of the book that i love - that conversation about islam he had w/ farouq and khalil gave me so much life - and i wonder how many autobiographical things teju cole let slip into this book disguised as fiction. it's so weird thinking of an author not as someone who just writes but someone who exists and have his thoughts on opinions. the book is like a low quiet hum in your head. it's there but it's not persistent, but it is there. also made me realize you can actually be published author w/o needing that complete plot cycle thing (especially that climax-resolution thing that i struggle with) and i needed that. thnx. hope you wait for my book abt jakarta youth

definitely like teju('s persona in uwrf15) more than i like julius, tho

madina &
Open City by Teju Cole

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madina &Open City by Teju Cole

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madina &
Open City by Teju Cole