Description
Ten pages, perhaps fifteen, is the breath I hold in my chest before deciding: Should I take this book seriously, or give it a breathless second chance?
Ranin Zidane’s novel has one long, though heavy, breath, as the scent of death wafts from the first pages.
The author addresses social, philosophical, and gender issues, opening two vortices in your mind: the first belongs to the real world, which gnaws at you with harsh, undeniable truths—injustice, violence, and arrogance. The second draws you toward the virtual reality that is increasingly entrenched in our lives.
The bee and the cloud that accompany the novel’s heroine, “Yafa,” accompanied me and left a tender impression on my heart.
However, certain scenes provoked me: those replete with violence, permissible murder, child molestation, and betrayal. The romantic scenes of the virtual lover may have also exhausted me, but at the same time, they illuminated dark corners. In my opinion, The Shadow of Blue is a starkly realistic novel, written by a confident feminist voice, that attempts to confront the harsh reality and complexity we live in our wounded country.
I conclude with this quote, dedicated to all female readers, speaking from the heart of Jaffa:
“One day, I will be able to say ‘no’ when I don’t want to.”
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