This is an earthy, engrossing tale, full of surprises, bizarre but frequently moving. Though sprawling in scope, it also seems tightly controlled and skillfully constructed.
It reminded me of Eka Kurniawan’s Beauty is a Wound (though I read that book many years ago, so maybe they’re actually quite different…) — both have elements of magic and surrealism, and a tenacious woman character (or several) navigating an immense, often brutal world, with major historical shifts playing out in the background. Both are matter-of-fact about that brutality, even delving into some really horrific experiences (rape, torture), but without seeming gratuitous or sensationalistic. Strange as it may sound to say, the violence is organic to the world, part of the human experience, with all of its sorrows and joys, that they so eloquently, yet playfully, capture.
Kasia Reads 