The main character in "Paris Metro," New Yorker writer Wendell Steavenson's debut novel, is a once-driven journalist who's no longer chasing headlines. That's because, for Catherine "Kit" Kittredge, the book's flawed heroine, reporting the news has become all too personal. A beloved friend is shot and killed in the terror attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Although she's raising the young son of her Iraqi ex-husband, she has little patience for hearing the perspective of her Muslim sources.
I didn't note the tremor and reedy tone of their voices as I once would have done," says the fictional Kittredge. That's a far cry from the Kittredge we meet at the beginning of the novel. That shift in attitude and perspective is at the heart of "Paris Metro. And her question is, 'Why should I be tolerant of people who are not tolerant of me?
It's a question being asked by many of those who formerly resided in "safe spots" in wealthy countries, where the violence and turbulence of the war on terror has finally intruded. And from the beginning it was the officers who claimed for themselves the task of interpreting the will of the people on the square — drafting constitutions, setting up electoral schedules and even toppling presidents if need be.
Unlike the protesters, these two groups played the long game, and ultimately the army played it more ruthlessly. Since they had so much to lose, why did the Muslim Brotherhood agree to field a presidential candidate?
What calculus was responsible for the catastrophically bad decisions its members made once in power? Few books are better than this one at conveying the confusion and excitement of those days on the square. But what has happened in Egypt since then should serve as a caution.
The story of Tahrir, for all its real heroism, is just one among many, and it may not be the most important. Whether you want biographies, novels or essay collections, we can help you find your next book to read. Iraq before Saddam's fall was not an area of history I was familiar with, and I learnt The story pulled me in very quickly and held my interest to the end. The various perspectives of the family, friends and colleagues of Kamel Sachet were very interesting and insightful Timely read.
Provides insight into the current condition of Iraq and how it got that way Steavenson's voice comes out a lot in this book, which is unusual for a biography but perhaps less so for a political one. On the one hand, we can hear her fire, her passion and care for the people sh Wendell Steavenson is an Anglo-American journalist and author, having reported mostly from the Middle East and the Caucasus as a regular contributor for publications such as Guardian, Prospect magazine, Slate, Granta and others.
After publishing three non-fiction books, "Paris Metro" is her first novel. Toggle navigation eBooks, epub, comic, magazine and PDF shelf. Genres Most Read Account. Read Book Online Download Book. A few weeks ago, we sat down in a busy cafe in her neighborhood. When we met she was huddled up against the cold in a tawny fur-covered jacket; a chunky yellow G-Shock water-resistant watch adorned her wrist and a pair of horn-rimmed glasses sat snugly on her nose.
Her original intention had been to write a nonfiction book about the January massacre at the offices of the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. Steavenson said. Want to keep up with the latest and greatest in books?
This is a good place to start. Steavenson, laughing. Kit is there to report on the siege for an unnamed American newspaper.
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