Internment by Samira Ahmed

Standalone

Publisher : Atom

Publication date : March 19th, 2019

Source : Paperback

Rating : 4 hearts

Synopsis

Rebellions are built on hope.

Set in a horrifying near-future United States, seventeen-year-old Layla Amin and her parents are forced into an internment camp for Muslim American citizens.

With the help of newly made friends also trapped within the internment camp, her boyfriend on the outside, and an unexpected alliance, Layla begins a journey to fight for freedom, leading a revolution against the internment camp’s Director and his guards.

Heart-racing and emotional, Internment challenges readers to fight complicit silence that exists in our society today.

Review

Internment tells us a story that may very well happen soon in the United States. I must confess that it is quite frightening to think that it is not so far from the truth. I have wondered several times how I would have reacted in this situation, not Layla’s but that of the Americans around who do nothing and stay gently at home. This book, even if it doesn’t deal with Nazis, reminded me a lot of my history lessons. As a French girl living in a family that had a member in a concentration camp for resistance, I was touched by this story.

Layla is being held in a camp because she is Muslim and therefore dangerous, according to the President of the United States. However, Layla is not the type to let herself be carried away and she will rebel in her own way. She will find in the camp a very useful and friendly ally.

I really liked this story, the background is very interesting and the human side of all the characters is also very interesting. There are people who fight, people who are afraid, traitors, cowards and people who still try to get through everything.

If I had to give a negative point it would be on the love relationship, I don’t find it interesting at all and I didn’t manage to get attached to the male partner.

In any case, I liked the author’s style and I advise you all to read this book.

Quick word: A book to read absolutely.

Chronique

Internment nous raconte une histoire qui pourrait très bien arriver prochainement aux USA. Je vous avoue que c’est assez effrayant de se dire que ce n’est pas si loin de la vérité. Je me suis demandée plusieurs fois comment j’aurais réagi dans cette situation, pas celle de Layla mais celle des américains autour qui ne font rien et reste gentiment chez eux. Ce livre même si il ne traite pas des nazis m’a beaucoup rappelé mes cours d’histoire. En tant que française vivant dans une famille qui a eu un membre en camp de concentration pour résistance, j’ai été touchée par cette histoire.

Layla est don enfermée dans un camp parce qu’elle est musulmane et donc par conséquent dangereuse, selon le président des Etats Unis. Cependant Layla n’est pas du genre à se laisser faire et elle va se rebeller à sa manière. Elle va trouver dans le camp un allié très utile et très sympathique.

J’ai beaucoup aimé cette histoire, le fond est très intéressant et le côté humain de tous les personnages l’est aussi. Il y a les gens qui se battent, les gens qui ont peur, les traitres, les lâches et les gens qui essaient malgré tout de s’en sortir en passant au travers de tout.

Si je devais donner un point négatif ce serait sur la relation amoureuse, je ne la trouve pas intéressante du tout et je n’ai pas réussi à m’attacher au partenaire masculin.

En tout cas j’ai aimé le style de l’auteur et je vous conseille à tous de lire ce livre.

En bref : Un livre à lire absolument.

About the author

SAMIRA AHMED was born in Bombay, India, and grew up in Batavia, Illinois, in a house that smelled like fried onions, spices, and potpourri. She currently resides in the Midwest. She’s lived in Vermont, New York City, and Kauai, where she spent a year searching for the perfect mango.

A graduate of the University of Chicago, she taught high school English for seven years, worked to create over 70 small high schools in New York City, and fought to secure billions of additional dollars to fairly fund public schools throughout New York State. She’s appeared in the New York Times, New York Daily News, Fox News, NBC, NY1, NPR, and on BBC Radio. Her creative non-fiction and poetry has appeared in Jaggery Lit, Entropy, the Fem, and Claudius Speaks.

Her writing is represented by Eric Smith of P.S. Literary.

Links

Goodreads : https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38167114-internment?from_search=true

Amazon : https://www.amazon.com/Internment-Samira-Ahmed/dp/0316522694/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_1?crid=4T1MUMCMTPG5&keywords=internment+samira+ahmed&qid=1556527850&s=gateway&sprefix=internment%2Caps%2C198&sr=8-1-fkmrnull