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A review by shorshewitch
Ravens Before Noah by Susanna Harutyunyan
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I read this as a part of the @translatedgems' #translatedgemsbookclub, January read.
From Genesis, we know that the flood lasted a total of one year and ten days. The raven and the dove were released over a period of 21 days after the mountaintops became visible. The raven served as a first attempt to discover dry land, and the dove became Noah’s way of determining when to leave the ark.
Whether or not this relates to Ravens before Noah by Susanna Harutyunyan (translated by Nazareth Seferian) is unclear, it does, however, seem to attempt to base itself on the premise.
Set in the Armenian mountains somewhere between 1915 to 1960, the plot revolves around a child who has escaped the 1894 Hamidian massacres in Turkey, with an old man. The story tells us about the village that the old man and the child build (a possible interpretation of the Noah's Ark), sheltering those displaced, tortured, helping them survive and escaping their old lives. The villagers use the good old barter system to exchange goods and services and other than your general patriarchy, cultural chasm coupled with selfish greed and basic violence, the village looks like a good place to at least stay alive. The world outside seems far worse.
The child grows up to become a young man, Harout, responsible for the business of the village with the outside world, but no one other than him knows how to get out or get in the village. Until one day... And so the story goes.
I couldn't place the raven. It could be a tombstone that was placed on the village border at one point, or one of the other main characters, Nakshun, who found the village, half dead and pregnant, tortured and raped by the Turks, or even one of the side characters who played a small role that caused a significant development. I don't even know if my interpretation of the Ark is right. It totally could work the other way round, if one assumed the tinsmith who came to the village one day to be the raven. It all is kept open.
The narrative shifts drastically from one page to another. The POVs and the timelines also take a massive turn sporadically, and one has to keep up with the frantic changes happening. If one is like me, then they would be slow to grasp, most likely would only know by the middle of a passage that this was something related to another thing they read a few pages back, but one does catch up eventually. It is fascinating. You might discover things about your own brain and level of grasping. That said, the style is also dangerous. Might not suit some readers. The possibility of a DNF is huge.
But if you keep going, there is a fantastic story for you. And some very intriguing characters, food descriptions, and cultural innuendos.
I will probably spend the next few days googling Armenian genocide, history, food, dresses, folklore, magic etc. It should be an engaging time.
From Genesis, we know that the flood lasted a total of one year and ten days. The raven and the dove were released over a period of 21 days after the mountaintops became visible. The raven served as a first attempt to discover dry land, and the dove became Noah’s way of determining when to leave the ark.
Whether or not this relates to Ravens before Noah by Susanna Harutyunyan (translated by Nazareth Seferian) is unclear, it does, however, seem to attempt to base itself on the premise.
Set in the Armenian mountains somewhere between 1915 to 1960, the plot revolves around a child who has escaped the 1894 Hamidian massacres in Turkey, with an old man. The story tells us about the village that the old man and the child build (a possible interpretation of the Noah's Ark), sheltering those displaced, tortured, helping them survive and escaping their old lives. The villagers use the good old barter system to exchange goods and services and other than your general patriarchy, cultural chasm coupled with selfish greed and basic violence, the village looks like a good place to at least stay alive. The world outside seems far worse.
The child grows up to become a young man, Harout, responsible for the business of the village with the outside world, but no one other than him knows how to get out or get in the village. Until one day... And so the story goes.
I couldn't place the raven. It could be a tombstone that was placed on the village border at one point, or one of the other main characters, Nakshun, who found the village, half dead and pregnant, tortured and raped by the Turks, or even one of the side characters who played a small role that caused a significant development. I don't even know if my interpretation of the Ark is right. It totally could work the other way round, if one assumed the tinsmith who came to the village one day to be the raven. It all is kept open.
The narrative shifts drastically from one page to another. The POVs and the timelines also take a massive turn sporadically, and one has to keep up with the frantic changes happening. If one is like me, then they would be slow to grasp, most likely would only know by the middle of a passage that this was something related to another thing they read a few pages back, but one does catch up eventually. It is fascinating. You might discover things about your own brain and level of grasping. That said, the style is also dangerous. Might not suit some readers. The possibility of a DNF is huge.
But if you keep going, there is a fantastic story for you. And some very intriguing characters, food descriptions, and cultural innuendos.
I will probably spend the next few days googling Armenian genocide, history, food, dresses, folklore, magic etc. It should be an engaging time.