3 out of 4 stars
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There are thousands of Adele’s fans all over the world, and there are some in Jordan as the authors of My Trip to Adele are from this Middle East country. Even though there are three different tales described in the book, their unified focus is a trip to Adele’s concert in Verona, Italy. These three stories present readers with different countries, cultures, couples and endings.
Firstly, there is Elias' story. He falls in love with Malika while visiting his hometown in Morocco. However, once he learns that she is underage, he chooses to leave her behind. After eight years of separations, he discovers that he may be cursed and so he decides to shatter the black magic break-up spell cast upon him. Moreover, he wants to search for Malika, his long-lost love. This quest leads him to Adele’s concert hoping to find Malika as they promise each other to meet there one day.
The second story develops in Las Vegas in the U.S.A. where Miriam and Yaser, a married couple of 8 years, are having troubles which they try to resolve with the help of a marriage counsellor. Although Yaser hopes for reconciliation at the concert, because Adele’s songs can produce memories that could bring them together, they seem to be drifting more and more apart.
Finally, Nadia is a divorced mother of Walled, a boy who adores Adele, living in Jordan. The concert appears to be the perfect birthday gift for him. However, between Nadia’s dream and the trip stands her abusive ex-husband. He will never let Nadia enjoy her freedom and security.
These characters take a journey of discovery of harsh truths, guilt, painful memories but also desire, courage and hopes for better future. They are strong characters. My favourite is Nadia who is willing to rebel against her family and culture. She does this to give her son normal life and sense of safety. This read is full of deep thoughts about life. For example, ‘I believe there will come a moment when we are struck with regret over what we have missed amid all this hustle and bustle’ (chapter 3).
Chapters of this novel have titles after Adele’s songs, and there are fitting quotes from the lyrics at the end of them. I’ve never read a book written similarly. And I believe it’s clever. In my opinion, readers should listen to these lyrics to enjoy their deep meaning blended into the novel. However, people who are not interested in Adele's music may feel a bit lost reading it. Nevertheless, the book is written well and appears to be professionally edited. I did not find any grammatical errors or misprints.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I like two of the stories, but I can’t relate to the one about Elias. Even though Elias’ journey is interesting to some point, I’m sure someone who knows the culture and religion, that is an important part of this read, would appreciate it more than me. This novel would be great for any of Adele’s fans because her songs are at the heart of it, and for those who like complicated stories and pondering about the meaning of life.
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Trip to Adele
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