Leave the World Behind
- Downloads：3049
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-30 00:51:47
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Rumaan Alam
- ISBN：1526633108
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A magnetic novel about two families， strangers to each other， who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City， quality time with their teenage son and daughter， and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week。 But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell。 Ruth and G。 H。 are an older black couple—it’s their house， and they’ve arrived in a panic。 They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city。 But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down， and no cell phone service—it’s hard to know what to believe。
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple—and vice versa？ What happened back in New York？ Is the vacation home， isolated from civilization， a truly safe place for their families？ And are they safe from one another？
Suspenseful and provocative， Rumaan Alam’s third novel is keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood， race， and class。 Leave the World Behind explores how our closest bonds are reshaped—and unexpected new ones are forged—in moments of crisis。
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City， quality time with their teenage son and daughter， and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week。 But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell。 Ruth and G。 H。 are an older black couple—it’s their house， and they’ve arrived in a panic。 They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city。 But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down， and no cell phone service—it’s hard to know what to believe。
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple—and vice versa？ What happened back in New York？ Is the vacation home， isolated from civilization， a truly safe place for their families？ And are they safe from one another？
Suspenseful and provocative， Rumaan Alam’s third novel is keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood， race， and class。 Leave the World Behind explores how our closest bonds are reshaped—and unexpected new ones are forged—in moments of crisis。
Reviews
Sara
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Couldn’t get into it， and wanted to find out what was going to happen， but also didn’t feel too invested in the characters。 Didn’t feel like much closure at the end？
Christina_lambert
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This is a very fast read， and a book that is hard to put down。 It is an apocalyptic storyline about a family that flees NYC for a weekend at an Airbnb only to have strange things start to happen。 Mild spoiler:I would have given it 5 stars but the author never explains what is happening。 A number of mysterious events transpire， and the book ends with no resolution。 So I enjoyed reading it， but wanted answers！
Claire
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Solid 3。5。 Loved the writing; dark， foreboding in the second half。 Not a huge fan of the ending。 The blurb doesn’t feel that relevant to the story。 Nevertheless， would still recommend。
Megan Hansen
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Awful。
Kim Bristowe
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The idea is great but the writing not so much。 Disappointing end。
Doug Worden
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Ok， I can't remember the last time I stopped reading a book。 The writing style was very strange。 Slow development but also strangely just boring。 Describing environment， clothing， just general information for most of a chapter is。。。。。。。ZZzzz。。。 Sorry， but i need more plot and less general descriptions and comments。。。 Not great。 Ok， I can't remember the last time I stopped reading a book。 The writing style was very strange。 Slow development but also strangely just boring。 Describing environment， clothing， just general information for most of a chapter is。。。。。。。ZZzzz。。。 Sorry， but i need more plot and less general descriptions and comments。。。 Not great。 。。。more
Eleanor
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This book will not be for everyone。 It's not going to be for a lot of people。 There is a definite weirdness to this book。 I believe it was done on purpose。 It helped create the atmosphere。 I felt like I had unsure footing as the reader and I think that's what the author wanted。We are given hints at what happened to the world， but we are never given exactly what happened and that will drive a lot of readers insane。 But we the readers are in the shoes of the people in the story。 We know what they This book will not be for everyone。 It's not going to be for a lot of people。 There is a definite weirdness to this book。 I believe it was done on purpose。 It helped create the atmosphere。 I felt like I had unsure footing as the reader and I think that's what the author wanted。We are given hints at what happened to the world， but we are never given exactly what happened and that will drive a lot of readers insane。 But we the readers are in the shoes of the people in the story。 We know what they know and it's not very much。 Lack of knowledge and no access to knowledge， uncertainty， confusion。。。they all lead to anxiety and fear。 It's what the characters felt and what we're supposed to feel。I'll admit that I was a slightly turned off by some things in the book， but weirdly at the same time it made me want to keep reading。 I'm so glad I did。 I'm glad that the numerous amount of negative reviews didn't stop me from picking up this book。 。。。more
Cmaurer
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Not sure how I feel about this one。 Didn't enjoy reading it， visceral response to apocalyptic novel。 Not sure how I feel about this one。 Didn't enjoy reading it， visceral response to apocalyptic novel。 。。。more
Charity
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Awful
Kate
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Hmm。 The popularity and long wait for this book seems。。。unnecessary？ I did not love it。 If we're going to go apocalyptic I want more。 Hmm。 The popularity and long wait for this book seems。。。unnecessary？ I did not love it。 If we're going to go apocalyptic I want more。 。。。more
Susan Zannos
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Like another reader， I kept waiting for something to happen。 Interesting， but maybe too cerebral for me right now
Alyssa
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I have no idea what I just read。 Honestly。 It’s a mix of Jericho and Left Behind and I don’t even know。 I didn’t not enjoy it， but I’m not sure I enjoyed it either。
Jackie
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The worst book I have actually finished in a long time。
Carissa
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Unsettling， unresolved， disturbing。 Basically don’t read this if you’re someone who has been diagnosed with GAD （generalized anxiety disorder）。 K？
Gigi
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Really didn’t know where this was going to go honestly and when it ended I wasn’t sure what just happened！
Antonio Campos
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3。5/5Estoy en conflicto con esta historia。Me gustó mucho todo el desarrollo que tuvimos， como la tensión y la preocupación fue en aumento al pasar de las páginas， eso acompañado del montón de situaciones extrañas que los personajes iban viviendo， crea un ambiente bastante tenso。Con esto podría decir que es una historia enfocada en la atmosfera y las sensaciones。 Quizás un thriller psicológico。La forma del autor de paulatinamente ir creando tensión es excelente， todo comienza tranquilo y relajado 3。5/5Estoy en conflicto con esta historia。Me gustó mucho todo el desarrollo que tuvimos， como la tensión y la preocupación fue en aumento al pasar de las páginas， eso acompañado del montón de situaciones extrañas que los personajes iban viviendo， crea un ambiente bastante tenso。Con esto podría decir que es una historia enfocada en la atmosfera y las sensaciones。 Quizás un thriller psicológico。La forma del autor de paulatinamente ir creando tensión es excelente， todo comienza tranquilo y relajado pero al ir llegando al final estaba con un inmenso vació de la angustia que tenía。Los personajes， cada uno de ellos tenía un montón de emociones en conflicto， muchas preocupaciones y pensamientos raros， a esto sumémosle las situaciones tan raras en las que se encontraban， realmente llegué a pensar que cada uno de ellos se encontraba en un estado mental bastante cuestionable。 Cada una de las perspectivas nos daba algo que sonaba interesante， pero a la vez muy raro y cuestionable。 Mas sus divagaciones morales， hicieron que realmente me sintiera tenso al leer esta historia。Pero mi mayor tema fue el final， no me gustó。 Sentí que todo quedó inconcluso， quedó como a medias。 Es como cuando se está oyendo una canción y de un momento a otro te la pausan cuando uno está llegando hacia el final; algo así me sentí con esta historia。En general， la historia es interesante， el interés por lo que va a suceder va incrementando conforme pasa el tiempo， pero mi pega sigue siendo ese final。 。。。more
Damian Mxyzptlk
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Who would have guessed this will turn out to be cosmic （or posthuman） horror in the guise of literary fiction？ At its best it reminds me of VanderMeer with more than a dash of Oe's grotesque naturalism。 I wish it left more things to imagination， but I'm guessing that weird was possibly not the intention in this book。 It would have been even better if there was more of the uncanny and unexplained to underscore how lost human animal still is in the universe it tried to subjugate for so long。 Who would have guessed this will turn out to be cosmic （or posthuman） horror in the guise of literary fiction？ At its best it reminds me of VanderMeer with more than a dash of Oe's grotesque naturalism。 I wish it left more things to imagination， but I'm guessing that weird was possibly not the intention in this book。 It would have been even better if there was more of the uncanny and unexplained to underscore how lost human animal still is in the universe it tried to subjugate for so long。 。。。more
Elizabeth Dominguez Meraz
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It took me forever to finish this， literally。 Overall was kind of a quiet drama。 But the ending was wowwow I can’t believe this
Sped Erstad
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Clever
David Berlin
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I started reading this book because the premise sounded interesting to me。 A white couple with 2 kids from NYC to go out to the country at an Airbnb。 A black couple who owns it shows up out of nowhere asking them if they can stay in their own home， because of an unknown explosion in the city。 That is a good starting point to create some tension。 The families could not get any news， had no cell phone signal， no tv signal， and there are no other humans around。 What happened？ A terrorist attack？ A I started reading this book because the premise sounded interesting to me。 A white couple with 2 kids from NYC to go out to the country at an Airbnb。 A black couple who owns it shows up out of nowhere asking them if they can stay in their own home， because of an unknown explosion in the city。 That is a good starting point to create some tension。 The families could not get any news， had no cell phone signal， no tv signal， and there are no other humans around。 What happened？ A terrorist attack？ A black out？ A nuclear catastrophe？ Is this nothing or could it be the end of the world coming？That is as good as it got。 For a book about the end of the world， it was a boring and very annoying read。 The overly descriptive writing style going character to character in short chapters was tiresome。 I had a hard time keeping my concentration。 Weird， random， unanswered occurrences keep happening and nothing is connected。 Nothing is answered。 It kind of plays out like a cheap horror film。 None of the characters in the story are that interesting， and the fact that you never know what is going on is quite frustrating。 The absence of knowledge that is meant to play into the tension and fear did not work for me。 One of the characters in the story is named G。H。， who is also called George。 The author could not makeup his mind to call him George or G。H。 It made no sense to me like many things in this book。 G。H。 and his wife seemed to be introduced in this book to create a racial tension and then the book abandons it to go over such things as a overly descriptive 2-page grocery list， herds of deer and flamingos in their yard。 Flamingos in New York？ Why not go for giraffes？ The only reason I finished Leave the World Behind is because it was short and the good reviews。 You feel the panic of some of the characters near the end， and I felt panic in the middle， because I was sensing that all these unanswered weird occurrences in the story were not going to be answered and weirder occurrences would keep coming。I found this a deeply unsatisfying book and I would sum it up by saying， “Leave this book behind！” 。。。more
emma
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very mixed feeling about this
Katheryn Thompson
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I love the concept of this book: a family are on holiday in a luxurious home they have rented for the week， when suddenly the home's owners turn up at the door。 Something has happened， and they want to come home。 What I love about Leave the World Behind is that Rumaan Alam has taken this intriguing （and relatable） concept， and really done something interesting with it by making the holidaying family white， and the owners of the home Black。 If you're looking for a slow-burner， a novel simmering w I love the concept of this book: a family are on holiday in a luxurious home they have rented for the week， when suddenly the home's owners turn up at the door。 Something has happened， and they want to come home。 What I love about Leave the World Behind is that Rumaan Alam has taken this intriguing （and relatable） concept， and really done something interesting with it by making the holidaying family white， and the owners of the home Black。 If you're looking for a slow-burner， a novel simmering with tension， look no further。 。。。more
Jose
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Bro， what’s all the noise， bro？
glória
，
o livro foi escrito todinho assim o livro foi escrito todinho assim 。。。more
Chase
，
3。5 rounded up！
Tabitha Mase
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This was a terrible book。 I would never recommend it， yet why am I still thinking about it？First， the first five pages contained so many perplexing and obnoxious words that I had to stop and look up the definitions， and it was so overly wordy and pretentious， I almost put it down after one chapter—I mean， hello？ Who knows what “talus of oats” （no sense whatsoever even reading what “talus” means）， pudendum （ seriously？）， plaints， odalisques。。。not to mention the superfluous language and “hyperbole This was a terrible book。 I would never recommend it， yet why am I still thinking about it？First， the first five pages contained so many perplexing and obnoxious words that I had to stop and look up the definitions， and it was so overly wordy and pretentious， I almost put it down after one chapter—I mean， hello？ Who knows what “talus of oats” （no sense whatsoever even reading what “talus” means）， pudendum （ seriously？）， plaints， odalisques。。。not to mention the superfluous language and “hyperbole” in the words。The premise of the book is cool and creepy， but with no resolution to what really happened （but plenty of foreboding， ominous hints along the way）， we learn that some kind of disaster has occurred， snd due to our reliance on technology， these two families are kept ignorant and afraid。 。。。more
Wendi Tingley
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This is not my typical read。 The story borders on science fiction。 A catastrophic event takes place， we are never told what the event exactly was。 There are black outs and all satellites are down。 Cell phones， landlines， internet， and cable are all knocked out。 Strange， sonic noises occur impacting the health of humans。 It makes me think…how would I reach out to my kids and my family…could this really happen in our days of technology？ It will make you consider the possibilities！
Kareninsacramento
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Captivating， although the descriptions are overly precious at times， which can be offputting。But the book ends before the story is finished， which is maddening。
Calli Leventis
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Couldn't finish。 Freaked me out too much。 Very compelling though！ Couldn't finish。 Freaked me out too much。 Very compelling though！ 。。。more
Michelle Park
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Kept waiting for it to get good， and then it ended， oddly and without explanation。 The writing was poor and the story was confusing。 Did something happen， did nothing happen？ Very odd indeed。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Leave the World Behind
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Leave the World Behind&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft