The Wasted Vigil
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Product Description
Review
'Ambitious and luminous ... The Wasted Vigil reminds us that fiction can do things that mere reportage can't ... Aslam does not simply appropriate a few headlines for easy currency. He has immersed himself in a country and a culture.' --Peter Parker, Sunday Times
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
Review
'[Aslam] confirms he is a writer of singular genius ... Beautiful, harrowing and fired with a compelling sense of horror, The Wasted Vigil is remarkable ... the quest novel we should - no, must - all read.'
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was recommended this book by a friend. The cover is plastered with rave reviews so my expectations were perhaps too high. Having read a lot about Afghanistan and the American/UN war there I found the content and historical background fascinating and it reinforced what I had read before. But I'm afraid I could not suspend disbelief in the plot and none of the characters came alive for me except perhaps for Casa, the boy who was brought up and indoctrinated in a Madrassa and Dunia, the young woman schoolteacher who makes fleeting contact with him. The plot is very complex with much use of flashbacks and this works quite well. But for me, the constant diversions into philosophical and artistic reverie seem contrived and detract from the content. It is as if the author is trying to show how clever and erudite he is. So in summary, interesting, revealing, well researched and horrific as far as what is happening on the ground and the historical/cultural background is concerned. It is worth reading for that alone if you can ignore the whimsy.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The beauty of this book depends on the landscapes and works of arts painted with words of utmost skill. The horror of this book is the history of recent decades in Afghanistan, told through several stories, representing all parties that put their fingers into the meager pie there - with good or evil intentions, but with equally tragic consequences. As a novel, it is amazing. As a message, it is terrifying in that it leaves no hope for the future. It seems that all that was beautiful will vanish sooner or later, and even the beauty of some characters has been created by the author as an embellishment, to be admired, but not to be believed.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is one of the most gut wrenchingly powerful novels I've ever read. Some passages were so affecting I had to look away from the page for a while. I haven't read any of this author's work before, and I'm so glad to have discovered him.
The Wasted Vigil really is fiction at its very best. A complex story weaving together the tales of a rich cast of characters. A setting so vividly described you can see, smell and hear it. The emotion behind the writing is strong, the writing itself is lyrical without being overwrought.
I can't praise this book enough. It's the best novel I've read in years, and it's one that I'll think about for a long, long time.
The Wasted Vigil really is fiction at its very best. A complex story weaving together the tales of a rich cast of characters. A setting so vividly described you can see, smell and hear it. The emotion behind the writing is strong, the writing itself is lyrical without being overwrought.
I can't praise this book enough. It's the best novel I've read in years, and it's one that I'll think about for a long, long time.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Wasted Vigil - Interesting themes for our times
A book that has a range of themes; evil, obsession, envy, hatred, violence, desire, love and patience among them. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Trisha11
Before reading this book about Afghanistan...
Before reading this book about Afghanistan, you should know that the author has never been in Afghanistan! Read more
Published on 1 Feb 2010 by Brave Lemming
A still small voice
'The Wasted Vigil' is a beautiful book that weaves an intriguing pattern and inspires readers to seek meaning, lessons, or anything else to pin their hopes on. In vain. Read more
Published on 20 Jan 2010 by W. Marth
If you only read one novel about Afghanistan make it this one.
This is a beautifully written, complex novel, that using memory, and some truly beautiful imagery weaves a tale of Afghanistan that is really quite unforgettable. Read more
Published on 31 Oct 2009 by A. Hope
Better than its cover...
This book is stunning and brutal in equal measure. Rarely have I read a book that has presented such a desperately sad outlook for its main characters, yet has continued to keep... Read more
Published on 17 Aug 2009 by Lucy Talk
Beautifully written yet disappointing
Maps for Lost Lovers was a wonderful novel and I was so looking forward to this one but although as beautifully written, it was disappointing. Read more
Published on 4 Aug 2009 by James Rogers
Beautifully written
This is a marvellous book which is both thought provoking and informative. The author uses delicately chosen words to describe the terrible history of Afghanistan.
Published on 21 July 2009 by Mr. J. P. Russell
Unforgettable
One of the great books of the year, an extraordinarily powerful and accomplished work that takes us on a harrowing ride through beauty and terror and gives us one of the most... Read more
Published on 13 July 2009 by Richard B. Cameron
Going backwards instead of forwards
Nadeem Aslam wrote an excellent second novel, "Maps for lost lovers", about bigotry and superstition in a Pakistani family in Northern Britain. Read more
Published on 28 April 2009 by S. Hare
An epic work
A truly great novel from the author of Maps for Lost Lovers. Lara is Russian and arrives in present-day Afghanistan to unravel the mystery shrouding the death of her soldier... Read more
Published on 17 Mar 2009 by Gerry McCaffrey
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