4 out of 4 stars
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The Expelled by Mois Benarroch is definitely an interesting book to read. This is one of the weirdest books, I daresay, that I have read in my entire life. I love how Mois Benarroch injected reality in this fiction book. It is quite challenging to summarize the book and I know that no matter what I write here, won't be able to give any spoilers because every chapter of this book is full of unique stories and it is impossible to remember them all.
As an overview, this book is a story in a story in a story. No, this is not a typo error. It is indeed a story three layers deep. It starts with a writer meeting a younger version of his wife and falling in love with her again. Then he reads a story he had written to his younger wife about a bus full of passengers that got lost in the woods and suddenly explodes. Then a passenger in the bus goes through an investigation and reads a memoir of his fellow passenger that contains the story of his life. It is really challenging to give a general summary of this book.
The author himself had challenged the way the critics would summarize the story but this should not discourage you from reading the book. I love how The Expelled explores the world of the lost ones, the people who never knew where they belong. The characters in the story are so relatable in a lot of ways. I like the fact that the nature of divisiveness in a group or a community was tackled. Yes, the sad reality was perfectly painted in his stories and you just can't help but agree that these things actually happen in real life.
Although the book is a work of fiction, it sometimes feels like a non-fiction, as if it was the author's biography. I agree with what he said about books: that nonfiction books seemed to be too good to be true and works of fiction are so relatable that they have to be an actual event in the author's life.
To quote a line in the story, "she had no sense of criticism and her poems could be great or complete crap and that was of no importance", I love reading such works that do not intend to please the general public just to sell more copies. I like books that make you listen to what the author thinks and this book certainly hit that mark.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. If you are into Charles Bukowski, Jack London and you love harsh realities in a work of fiction, this book is for you.
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The Expelled
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