Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Once in a while I come across a novel that makes me wish I were teaching again, a novel that begs for questions and discussion. This is one of those novels. Its brevity belies its complexity. Its characters -- main, minor, fleeting, and implied -- represent humanity as it is today. Its premise, while fanciful, creates the opportunity for readers to wonder if we have the courage to radically change how we view others and the world in which we all live. I read in a review that this is a hopeful novel and initially I was suspicious that a novel centering on the plight of innocent refugees fleeing violence and death could ultimately proffer a hopeful message. But hope there is despite the literal impossibility of its central plot device. The doors are a metaphor; do we have the courage to open them to those with the courage to walk through? Told in a spare but descriptive narrative, Mr. Hamid challenges his readers to open their minds to the possibilities that the future holds.