Abdulrazak GurnahParadise: A BBC Radio 4 Book at Bedtime, by the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature 2021 (Bloomsbury Paperbacks)

I was apprehensive at first, because of the old-fashioned style Gurnah writes in, but I was quickly immersed in a beautifully (and dauntingly) painted picture of Tanzania before WW1. Read it whilst I was travelling in the region and I really loved it.

I found this story rather sad, but in a good way. Evocative of the atmosphere of East Afica in that timespan, I found the main character did grip my interest enough to read this in very few sessions. Anyone who enjoys Africa stories and romance will enjoy this, even if it is tinged with disappointment.

I haven't finished reading this book, but so far this is definitely a five starrer. Gurnah has powerful descriptive qualities and his characters come to life. I'm looking for the key to unlock the secret of this story and am looking forward to continuing my read to the end.

Had to buy for uni but really enjoyed this tale

This is a wonderful book by a very interesting and talented writer. I will order more books by this author.

Enjoying it tremendously. Highly recommended.

Clearly not paradise as we understand it. A different world to ours, with relatives given into slavery in return for debts.

fantastic !

The best description I can give of this book is that it reads like a translation, even though it isn't. There's a certain flatness and distance to the writing that I associate with poor translations, and this turned out to be a book I had to push myself through. Fortunately, it's short.Paradise is the story of an adolescent boy, Yusuf, in early 20th century Tanzania. Yusuf's parents sell him to a merchant to satisfy a debt, and he spends the rest of the book working in the merchant's shop and accompanying him on a trading expedition to the interior. And that's the plot in its entirety. Apparently it's supposed to be a parable, mirroring the story of the Prophet Yusuf (the same person as Joseph in Genesis, unless I miss my guess). Unfortunately, the book is written in a plodding style and Yusuf is a non-entity, without personality or goals to keep the reader's interest. I've read interpretations arguing Yusuf was written as a blank state to symbolize Tanzania, which was at a crossroads (we see the beginning of European colonization here, as well as Arab and Indian influences). I suspect that does Tanzania a disservice, however, as no country could possibly be as boring as Yusuf.I try to give foreign literature the benefit of the doubt, as there's always the possibility that I just lack the cultural background to understand it, and East African readers would doubtless appreciate this more than I do. There is some story here, albeit a plodding one, and there are sparks of character among the secondary cast, particularly the merchants. While there's not an enormous amount of cultural detail, the book did put Tanzania on my mental map in a way that it wasn't before. However, this book completely failed to entertain me, and I found little to appreciate in the writing. (My favorite line: " `I don't know,' Uncle Aziz said, shrugging with indifference." Yes, the shrug had already tipped me off to his indifference.)In the end, not a book I'd recommend unless you are Tanzanian or are writing a thesis on a relevant topic. For the rest of us, not much to see here.

The book arrived, soon and in great condition. I had to read it for a class, however, it was still a great read.

Beautifully written and heart wrenching. Loved every page of this book.

Very expensive but lives up to all the review which isn't hype. Needs to be reissued in an affordable format.

I really wanted to like this book, but I just didn't. The other reviewers have probably explained it better than I could, but basically the biggest issue is with the characters. No development, the only thing I remembered about the main character within seconds of finishing the book (which I struggled to do) was that he was "beautiful". I do not recommend this book, which is sad because it had so much potential, and did have some (few and far between) engaging moments.