Fiction

Voices of the Lost

Voices of the Lost

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-29 09:54:26
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Hoda Barakat
  • ISBN：1786077221
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Summary

In an unnamed country torn apart by war， six strangers are compelled to share their darkest secrets。 Taking pen to paper， each character attempts to put in writing what they can't bring themselves to say to the person they love – mother， father， brother， lost love。 Their words form a chain of dark confessions， none of which reaches the intended recipient。

Profound， troubling and deeply human， Voices of the Lost tells the moving story of characters living on the periphery， battling with displacement， devastating poverty and the demons within themselves。 From one of today's most talented Arabic writers， Voices of the Lost is an urgent story of lives intimately woven together in a society that is tearing itself apart。

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Reviews

Isabel Williams ，

Set in an unnamed war-torn country， this novel consists of six letters。 Six strangers put their darkest secrets in writing to the person they love。 Each letter is a dark confession， but none of them reach their intended recipient。While the country in this novel is unnamed， I think that the characters are all Lebanese and living in France （but there seem to be differing opinions in this！！）， just as Barakat now lives in Paris， having left her home country in 1989。 The feeling of displacement is th Set in an unnamed war-torn country， this novel consists of six letters。 Six strangers put their darkest secrets in writing to the person they love。 Each letter is a dark confession， but none of them reach their intended recipient。While the country in this novel is unnamed， I think that the characters are all Lebanese and living in France （but there seem to be differing opinions in this！！）， just as Barakat now lives in Paris， having left her home country in 1989。 The feeling of displacement is therefore central to the novel。 Written originally in Arabic， Barakat takes on the voices of those who are lost or searching， a tough challenge， yet one she does with ease， delving into their various personas and characters， and developing a distinct voice for each protagonist。 Throughout the letters， she explores a number of themes: immigration， addiction， sexism， war， love， cultural reactions to gender and sexuality， poverty etc。For me the book got off to a rocky start。 I found the first letter writer absolutely unbearable - a self-pitying， abusive sexist who blamed his problems on the people around him。 I guess that shows the strength of Barakat’s writing that I loathed him so much but equally it meant I didn’t really enjoy the book until around half way through （the second letter I also found to be a little bland）。 However， at this point I really enjoyed the content， the voices and the subjects discussed， and loved the fifth letter which was a beautiful but heartbreaking account of a man embracing his sexuality。 The interconnection between the letters was also something I loved and I thought it was so well done。 Overall a good book， but one I’d hoped for a little more from。 。。。more

Clare Russell ，

Beautifully written， lyrical and a quick read but the style was difficult to follow or identify shared themes/connections

Salome ，

Ik kon de verhaallijn vaak niet volgen

Dimple ，

Voices of the Lost by Hoda Barakat- 3。5🌟Content Warnings: abuse， death， sexual assault， child abuse， PTSDVoices of the lost is a book， divided into three part， part one is letters written by unnamed people which never reach their addressed person， part two shows a part of those addressed in the part one who never received the letters and part three is a letter by the postman。 Hoda Barakat does not shy away by sugarcoating the horrors of war and puts them straight-forward to us readers。 Reading t Voices of the Lost by Hoda Barakat- 3。5🌟Content Warnings: abuse， death， sexual assault， child abuse， PTSDVoices of the lost is a book， divided into three part， part one is letters written by unnamed people which never reach their addressed person， part two shows a part of those addressed in the part one who never received the letters and part three is a letter by the postman。 Hoda Barakat does not shy away by sugarcoating the horrors of war and puts them straight-forward to us readers。 Reading this book reminded me of an essay I had analyzed a year or two ago。 That essay was based on the war torn Liberia and after I read the letter written by a sister to her brother， my thoughts immediately went to that essay。 I'll tell you that I gave this book 3。5 stars for several reasons including the fact that this book was difficult for me to get into， I found it difficult to connect to the first letter and only found the connection in the letters after this one。 I was enjoying is a lot and then there was a change in the style in the second part and that change was so sudden that it took me time to adjust once again。 This book is tough to get through（though this is not the reason why my rating is low） there are many trigger warnings and because these letter are personal is the reason why they go in detail and even though I wasn't crying while reading this book because I found it difficult to connect， it was horrific， I thanked my stars to be born in this country and in a period where my country is not at war or is war-torn at the moment。 Reading this book that spoke of how war affects individuals， how helplessness forces people to go to extreme ends to meet their needs， how unfair it is not only to women but to men， I'm not even sure if unfair is the right word I should use。 Reading this book took me to war-torn countries and it did not， could not remind me of world wars， but of the current situations， of what is happening in Afghanistan， of what has been happening in Syria， of every war torn country that has still not recovered。 To conclude， even though this book did not shake me， it did actually show me a lot about these six individual and how these wars have affected lives。 To those who would like to give this book a try， please read the trigger warnings。 。。。more

Marthabethan ，

I found this book relatively complicated to follow and slightly underwhelming。 The concept was a little confusing for me， but I did love the connections between the letters。 As the book went on， I better understood the author’s intention and became more invested in the stories being told。 I did struggle at points with the misogyny spouted by the male narrators， but understood that this was a perspective and included for a reason。 I didn’t really connect to any of the narrators and most of them w I found this book relatively complicated to follow and slightly underwhelming。 The concept was a little confusing for me， but I did love the connections between the letters。 As the book went on， I better understood the author’s intention and became more invested in the stories being told。 I did struggle at points with the misogyny spouted by the male narrators， but understood that this was a perspective and included for a reason。 I didn’t really connect to any of the narrators and most of them were unlikeable， but I was intrigued by their stories。 I really liked the perspectives from the female characters as these were much more engaging for me as a female reader。 Overall， it was a good book but not really something I would normally read。 I am glad I read it as the themes of life as a refugee and displacement were very well explored and really interesting to read about。 。。。more

Jocelyn ，

3。75 ⭐️Reads like a collection of loosely connected soliloquies which I really liked。 Each letter writer has a very unique voice。 Knocked a star off because I found each letter somewhat hard to get in to and it took me a while to realise the connection with the second part。 Maybe more a failure on my part but hey！

Faye Fullalove ，

Quite addictive to read but also difficult and confusing。 Felt like I wanted more from the second part （“responses” to the letters） and more conclusion。 But some interesting writing。

Byurakn ，

The book is set as series of letters。 The author of each letter is the unintended reader of the previous one and is inspired to write their own。 Although the letters are authored by people with different backgrounds， age and gender， they are all united by one thing: they are all the lost， in a foreign country， with no sense of a homeland， as their homeland is torn apart by a civil war。 Through the letters we learn the most intimate secrets of their authors， we learn about their desperation and t The book is set as series of letters。 The author of each letter is the unintended reader of the previous one and is inspired to write their own。 Although the letters are authored by people with different backgrounds， age and gender， they are all united by one thing: they are all the lost， in a foreign country， with no sense of a homeland， as their homeland is torn apart by a civil war。 Through the letters we learn the most intimate secrets of their authors， we learn about their desperation and their humble wishes of living a decent human life。 In the second part of the novel we encounter "the other viewpoint" of affairs， where the addressees of the letters tell their version of the story。 Whose side are you going to take？ Who are you going to believe？ In the final part we encounter the postman who can no longer deliver letters because the addressees and the addresses are not there anymore。 Hoda Bakarat's "Voices of the Lost" is a masterful depiction of war trauma， of the irreversible changes it makes in people and of the ignorance of the rest of the world。 Highly recommended， if you want to learn what a person goes through when their country is in war。 。。。more

Natasha ，

2。5/5 starsVoices of the Lost is a difficult book for me to rate。 It started off weak and I really had to force myself to read through the first two letters。 You never want to force yourself to read a book， it's not enjoyable， and I was very close to DNFing it。 However， once I got to letter three， everything turned around and I really enjoyed started to enjoy it。 I was eager to keep reading and see what the next letter and character was like。 Each character felt different and captivating。 Though 2。5/5 starsVoices of the Lost is a difficult book for me to rate。 It started off weak and I really had to force myself to read through the first two letters。 You never want to force yourself to read a book， it's not enjoyable， and I was very close to DNFing it。 However， once I got to letter three， everything turned around and I really enjoyed started to enjoy it。 I was eager to keep reading and see what the next letter and character was like。 Each character felt different and captivating。 Though fictional， I read deeply personal， harrowing， gripping stories and experiences from perspectives I would never have read or interacted with otherwise， and I really enjoyed that。 The writing style took a bit of adjusting to， but it made the characters feel more real and raw in my eyes。I went with 2。5 stars which I've rated as 3 stars using Goodreads staring system， because I felt like rounding up was a fairer representation of my thoughts， feelings， and reaction to this book than rounding down。 The lower score is mainly due to it being an initially difficult， and at times， unenjoyable book to read。 。。。more

Kirsty Le Dain ，

I did think the writing in this book was really amazing and that’s why it’s getting 3 stars even though I didn’t particularly enjoy reading it until the last chapters。 I found that I was unprepared for the gender-based violence that was in this book。 Although I did feel it was handled well and not overly gratuitous， the violence against women is something I don’t enjoy reading - particularly not from the perspective of the perpetrator。

Meg ，

A very average read for me - took me a long time despite it being short。 It was written in a unique way， with each of the characters having a unique voice， and each of the letters had important meaning， themes and some discussions on the experience of migration and the impact on a person。 The book had merit， but I feel that some of it was clouded by the wordiness of some passages。 I felt myself skim reading quite a lot and much of it going over my head。 Glad I read it and it provided things to t A very average read for me - took me a long time despite it being short。 It was written in a unique way， with each of the characters having a unique voice， and each of the letters had important meaning， themes and some discussions on the experience of migration and the impact on a person。 The book had merit， but I feel that some of it was clouded by the wordiness of some passages。 I felt myself skim reading quite a lot and much of it going over my head。 Glad I read it and it provided things to think about， but it wasn’t anything ground breaking for me。 。。。more

BTB ，

This was part of my Books That Matter subscription， not entirely sure what to make of it。 The idea is incredible and the book in places is so gripping and engaging， but so very dry in some places and towards the end I struggled to stay with it。

Charline ，

This book was in a recent Books That Matter box and even though I hadn't heard of it， I loved the synopsis and thought it would be something I would enjoy: In an unnamed country torn apart by war， six strangers are compelled to share their darkest secrets。 Taking pen to paper， each attempts to put in writing what they can't bring themselves to say to the person they love - mother， father， brother， lost love。 Their words form a chain of dark confessions， none of which reaches the intended recipie This book was in a recent Books That Matter box and even though I hadn't heard of it， I loved the synopsis and thought it would be something I would enjoy: In an unnamed country torn apart by war， six strangers are compelled to share their darkest secrets。 Taking pen to paper， each attempts to put in writing what they can't bring themselves to say to the person they love - mother， father， brother， lost love。 Their words form a chain of dark confessions， none of which reaches the intended recipient。But I really didn't like the first letter and that kind of put me off the rest of the book。 I found it too bleak and depressing。 It was one of those books you want to read quickly， so you can get onto something better。 Not for me unfortunately。 The cover's pretty though！ 。。。more

Scarlett Brunstrom ，

Great premise but I’m not sure it was executed as well as it could have been… got a little bored towards the end and some of the details in the letters were clearly there to add context for the reader and not normal things you’d include which kinda took me out of the story。 Beautifully written though！！

Denise ，

Told in six letters that never made it to their intended recipient， this unusual novel combines dark themes of war， trauma， poverty and abuse with lighter ones such as love both filial and romantic。 Fascinating structure and beautifully written。

Alexia Polasky ，

I loved the premise， enjoyed the voice during the first fourth of the book， but then ended up forcing myself to finish it。 The string of the narrative got tangled and became too long because of unnecessary ramblings。 Too bad， I was really hoping to enjoy this one。 I did like Barakat’s idea and use of language， so I’ll probably try something else some time in the future。

Beth McCallum ，

Sigh。。。 this book。It started really well for me and I was raving about this on bookstagram。 The writing is absolutely gorgeous and I loved the way the author played around with language。 The characters were VERY sexist and complicated， but written well。 Although the graphic details were disturbing， it was also eye-opening to the kind of things that people go through。 The author did not censor herself。 I also really enjoyed the letter structure at the beginning and how the next person found the l Sigh。。。 this book。It started really well for me and I was raving about this on bookstagram。 The writing is absolutely gorgeous and I loved the way the author played around with language。 The characters were VERY sexist and complicated， but written well。 Although the graphic details were disturbing， it was also eye-opening to the kind of things that people go through。 The author did not censor herself。 I also really enjoyed the letter structure at the beginning and how the next person found the last person's letter。 The way the stories were interweaving was really gripping me。But then it started to fall flat a bit。 Each character started to have the same voice， especially the men compared with the other men， and the women compared with the other women。 I liked the theme of boyhood/motherhood， but it seemed like that was the only theme the author really wanted to explore。 And what conclusion did she come to？ What was she trying to say？ I don't know。 That's where I struggled。 There were all these incredible themes that not a lot of authors explore in the way she was， but they never really came to any kind of conclusion or tied together。 So I just felt like ultimately， it fell flat for me。 I wanted more。 And all the building blocks were there， but it was like the construction was left unfinished。I also really struggled with the ending。 Again， I wanted more from the ending， especially considering how strong the beginning was。 I didn't really like trying to navigate who was speaking at the end。 And the way we didn't know if they were letters either， and if they were， was that really realistic？Overall， I think this is a beautiful novel that's worth reading， even if to experience the writing and the first four characters， but after that， it got lost on me。 。。。more

KIRIAKI（Dominica Amat） ，

https://dominicamat。blogspot。com/2021。。。Άραγε，τη νύχτα που χαμηλώνουν τα φώτα，πέφτουν οι όποιες αναστολές καί ο νους μας κατακλύζεται από διάφορες σκέψεις που μας ακολουθούν σε κάθε βήμα μας σαν τις ερινύες που καιροφυλακτούν στο σκοτάδι καί αποζητούν από εμάς ένα βαρύ αντίτιμο，μήπως είναι η κάλλιστη στιγμή για να τα βρούμε με τον εαυτό μας，να κάνουμε την αυτοκριτική μας καί να αποβάλλουμε από πάνω μας όλα όσα μας βαραίνουν καί μας εμποδίζουν να πάμε ένα βήμα παρά πέρα; Μήπως η νύχτα είναι ο κάλ https://dominicamat。blogspot。com/2021。。。Άραγε，τη νύχτα που χαμηλώνουν τα φώτα，πέφτουν οι όποιες αναστολές καί ο νους μας κατακλύζεται από διάφορες σκέψεις που μας ακολουθούν σε κάθε βήμα μας σαν τις ερινύες που καιροφυλακτούν στο σκοτάδι καί αποζητούν από εμάς ένα βαρύ αντίτιμο，μήπως είναι η κάλλιστη στιγμή για να τα βρούμε με τον εαυτό μας，να κάνουμε την αυτοκριτική μας καί να αποβάλλουμε από πάνω μας όλα όσα μας βαραίνουν καί μας εμποδίζουν να πάμε ένα βήμα παρά πέρα; Μήπως η νύχτα είναι ο κάλλιστος ''εξομολόγος'' που μπορεί να σταθεί απέναντί μας χωρίς να μας κρίνει，ή，να μας πιέζει επίμονα ώστε να λάβει τις όποιες απαντήσεις; Κι αν σας δινόταν η ευκαιρία να αποτυπώσετε όσα θέλετε να πείτε σε αγαπημένα σας πρόσωπα σε γράμματα που θα γράφονταν σε μία ανάλογη στιγμή，πόσοι/ες από εσάς θα ήσασταν διατεθειμένοι/ες να το κάνετε; Γράμματα όπου θα λέγατε τα πάντα ακόμη κι αυτά που φοβάστε να μοιραστείτε καί με τον ίδιο σας τον εαυτό。。。 Από μύχιες σκέψεις έως καί ένοχα μυστικά。 Δεν θα υπήρχε κανένας περιορισμός，ούτε καμία τιμωρία。 Από τις εκδόσεις Κέδρος εκδίδεται στη χώρα μας σε μετάφραση της κυρίας Πέρσας Κουμούτση το μυθιστόρημα ''Νυχτερινό ταχυδρομείο'' της συγγραφέως Hoda Barakat。 Ένα βιβλίο αποτελούμενο από επιστολές που γράφτηκαν την νύχτα καί τις χαρακτηρίζει ένας εξομολογητικός，θα έλεγα καί λυτρωτικός，χαρακτήρας。 Επιστολές με τελικούς αποδέκτες τη μητέρα，τον πατέρα，τον αδελφό καί την ερωμένη。 Επιστολές με τελικό σκοπό την νέα αρχή στη ζωή αυτών των ανθρώπων καί τη λύτρωση που επέρχεται από μία πνευματική κάθαρση。 Άραγε，αν δεν παραδοθούν στους τελικούς αποδέκτες ποτέ αυτές οι επιστολές που γράφτηκαν，τί θα συμβεί; Όπως καί να 'χει，θεωρώ πως οι άνθρωποι που τις έγραψαν θα αισθανθούν μία ανακούφιση，αφού θα έχουν βγάλει από μέσα τους ό，τι τους βαραίνει。 Όσο για τους παραλήπτες δε θα μάθουμε ποτέ με σιγουριά。。。 ''Ανεπίδοτες επιστολές που χάθηκαν στη δίνη του χρόνου， όπως και οι άνθρωποι που τις έγραψαν: μετανάστες， εξόριστοι της ζωής， παραβάτες， άνθρωποι ηττημένοι από τις συνθήκες και τις προσωπικές τους επιλογές， που αναζητούν τον δρόμο της επιστροφής， την πορεία προς τη λύτρωση και τη συγχώρεση， και νοσταλγούν έναν κόσμο που έχει χαθεί οριστικά。" （Περίληψη οπισθοφύλλου） Η συγγραφέας εναλλάσσει πρόσωπα καί μπαίνει πότε στην θέση του άνδρα καί πότε στην θέση της γυναίκας καί μιλάει εξ αυτών με απόλυτη επιτυχία κι αρμονία，χωρίς να γίνεται γραφική，ή，να έχει υποπέσει σε άλλα λάθη。 Με γλώσσα λιτή καί συνάμα στιβαρή，ύφος δωρικό，ίσως καί αιχμηρό，η συγγραφέας μιλάει ανοιχτά，χωρίς να ωραιοποιεί τις καταστάσεις με όμορφα，πομπώδη λόγια，για όλα όσα προβληματίζουν τους σύγχρονους Άραβες，άνδρες καί γυναίκες，τόσο μέσα στα πλαίσια της χώρας τους καί της κοινωνίας όπου ζουν καί δραστηριοποιούνται έως καί εκτός αυτών。 Προσπάθειες για ένα καλύτερο αύριο με διάφορους τρόπους，θεμιτούς κι αθέμιτους。 Προσπάθειες για απόδειξη πως όλα μπορούν να βελτιωθούν，τα παλιά κακώς κείμενα να εκλείψουν κι εντέλει να σταθούν ξανά στα πόδια τους。 Το βιβλίο έχει λάβει το διεθνές βραβείο αραβικής λογοτεχνίας （IPAF） το 2019 κι όχι άδικα κατ'εμέ。 Η συγγραφέας εμπνεόμενη τόσο από τα δικά της βιώματα，όσο κι από τα προσωπικά βιώματα των συμπατριωτών της τα συνδυάζει με την πρέπουσα δόση μυθοπλασίας καί μας προσφέρει ένα βιβλίο ευνόητο κι ουσιαστικό，πλημμυρισμένο από νοήματα καί σκέψεις。 Το βιβλίο είναι χωρισμένο σε τρία άνισα μέρη με φθίνουσα τάση όσον αφορά τον όγκο τους。 Ίσως αυτό να σας φανεί παράξενο，αλλά για μένα είναι ευφυέστατη αυτή η κίνηση της συγγραφέως κι ενισχύει τα λεγόμενά της。 Δεν πλατιάζει καί ο ειρμός του λόγου καί της σκέψης της είναι αβίαστος καί συνεχόμενος。 Σαν ο κύκλος που άνοιξε στην αρχή，ήρθε η στιγμή να κλείσει με τον κάλλιστο τρόπο。 Ολοκληρώνοντας το βιβλίο，τολμώ να πω πως δεν αντιλήφθηκα το πόσο γρήγορα πέρασε η ώρα κι ''επέστρεψα'' στην δική μας πραγματικότητα που αν το καλοσκεφτούμε υπάρχουν φορές που δεν διαφέρει από αυτή των ηρώων καί των ηρωϊδων σε κάποια σημεία。 Εκτός，λοιπόν，του ότι έμεινα ικανοποιημένη από την υπόθεσή του，γοητεύτηκα από την γραφή της συγγραφέως。 Με ''άγγιξε'' με ένα δικό της μοναδικό τρόπο καί σε αυτό παίζει σημαντικό ρόλο η εξαιρετική μετάφραση του κειμένου。 Πιστεύω πως η μεταφράστρια έπιασε απόλυτα τον παλμό καί την ιδιοσυγκρασία της συγγραφέως καί έμοιαζε σαν να έγραψε εκείνη το βιβλίο εξ αρχής。 Ναι，είναι από εκείνα τα βιβλία που τα ξεχωρίζω καί είμαι βέβαιη πως μελλοντικά θα ξαναδιαβάσω。 Εσείς το έχετε διαβάσει; Αν όχι，αναζητήστε το！ Καλές σας αναγνώσεις！ 。。。more

Rae ，

Epistolary novel。 Lost letters。 Lebanon。 Translated from Arabic。 Deeply disturbing。

Manon van Hastenberg ，

I wanted to like this so much， and the book definitely got better in the second half， but boy are there some mindless ramblings and （unnecessary） graphic details。

Ceyrone ，

This novel is told through a series of letters。 It’s also about war and deals with topics of love， both romantic and filial。 Also deals with abuse， trauma and those thoughts of darkness。 The letters are written by strangers who， through fate， happen to come across a letter that had been left behind or found。 Each letter has its own theme， yet initially initially inspired by the letter that came before。 You have a man who is considered “lovesick” and is paranoid that the government is following h This novel is told through a series of letters。 It’s also about war and deals with topics of love， both romantic and filial。 Also deals with abuse， trauma and those thoughts of darkness。 The letters are written by strangers who， through fate， happen to come across a letter that had been left behind or found。 Each letter has its own theme， yet initially initially inspired by the letter that came before。 You have a man who is considered “lovesick” and is paranoid that the government is following him is confused about his feelings towards his lover， another letter reveals what it’s like being at the scene of her mother’s death， a death she did not cause nor stop but one that did not stop her from prising the rings off her dead mother’s hands while she was on her deathbed。 Another letter is from a "girlie boy" addressed to the father who kicked him out， asking to come home。 The author delves deeper into the lives of the characters to show the the destinies of these strangers and what their end is like。 “But every person alive in the world has an innocent side and it shows when they stand in front of their mother。 In front of a mother， everyone becomes a little child again。” 。。。more

Hannah ，

This book is unlike anything I've ever read。 It's a series of letters written by those who are lost， those who are searching， those who've been displaced。 Each letter is intended for a loved one who will never have the opportunity to read it。 The letter is instead found by an unnamed stranger who， in turn， reflects upon what they have read and writes to a loved one of their own。Deep confessions and innermost thoughts are shared。 The darkest and most desperate corners of the human mind are explor This book is unlike anything I've ever read。 It's a series of letters written by those who are lost， those who are searching， those who've been displaced。 Each letter is intended for a loved one who will never have the opportunity to read it。 The letter is instead found by an unnamed stranger who， in turn， reflects upon what they have read and writes to a loved one of their own。Deep confessions and innermost thoughts are shared。 The darkest and most desperate corners of the human mind are explored without judgement。 Beautiful writing; heartwrenching and highly empathetic。 。。。more

Becca ，

I am not sure what to make of this book。 It's not that I didn't enjoy it， because I did。 But I just feel like it was a bit of a surface scratch， which leaves a lot left hanging。 Which I suppose is probably the point。 I think maybe a different format， like a short TV series would be really good to demonstrate the interconnectedness。 I am not sure what to make of this book。 It's not that I didn't enjoy it， because I did。 But I just feel like it was a bit of a surface scratch， which leaves a lot left hanging。 Which I suppose is probably the point。 I think maybe a different format， like a short TV series would be really good to demonstrate the interconnectedness。 。。。more

Shiny Dsouza ，

Stuck between a 3。5 and 4 star rating！ Mixed feelings。

Emily 🐳 ，

4。5⭐️

Milli ，

3。5A fascinating concept and structure （six strangers writing letters to people from their past， but each letter inspires the next）， and I loved the realisation of the second part。Voices of the lost is an apt title: not only are we hearing voices of individuals who are lost， but we're hearing perspectives from people who often are ignored or silenced。3。5 because I found it hard to really feel for characters you only know through a single letter。 3。5A fascinating concept and structure （six strangers writing letters to people from their past， but each letter inspires the next）， and I loved the realisation of the second part。Voices of the lost is an apt title: not only are we hearing voices of individuals who are lost， but we're hearing perspectives from people who often are ignored or silenced。3。5 because I found it hard to really feel for characters you only know through a single letter。 。。。more

Shanice ，

Great plot idea but couldn't connect to the story and found it boring。 Great plot idea but couldn't connect to the story and found it boring。 。。。more

Georgina Hicks ，

Horrific。 Brutal。 Haunting。 Really struggled at first。 Hard to say I “enjoyed” this book but it is beautifully written。 Extremely difficult subject matter。

Tamara Agha-Jaffar ，

Winner of the 2019 International Prize for Arabic Fiction， Voices of the Lost by Hoda Barakat， translated from the Arabic by Marilyn Booth， is in a three-part structure。 Part 1， Those Who are Lost， consists of a series of letters to and from unnamed individuals in unspecified countries in the Arab world。 Part 2， Those Who are Searching， consists of several monologues by the intended recipients of the letters who never receive the letters but who present events from their perspective。 The final s Winner of the 2019 International Prize for Arabic Fiction， Voices of the Lost by Hoda Barakat， translated from the Arabic by Marilyn Booth， is in a three-part structure。 Part 1， Those Who are Lost， consists of a series of letters to and from unnamed individuals in unspecified countries in the Arab world。 Part 2， Those Who are Searching， consists of several monologues by the intended recipients of the letters who never receive the letters but who present events from their perspective。 The final section， Those Who are Left Behind， is a monologue by a postal worker sheltering in a bombed-out post office。 He has sorted and registered the letters in the hope they will eventually be delivered。Part 1 is by far the largest part。 The letters， addressed to a former lover or family members， are confessional。 A woman writes to her former lover。 An escaped torturer begs forgiveness from his mother for torturing， maiming， and killing while he was a member of the secret police。 A sister writes to her brother explaining why she became a prostitute。 The letters never arrive to their intended recipients。 They are discarded in hotel rooms， storage lockers， and airports to be picked up by complete strangers who are then prompted to write their own letters in a chain that tangentially links the letters。The format is interesting and well-executed。 The contents of the letters reveal individuals living on the margins of society。 They suffer from poverty， childhood trauma， and abuse。 Some are illegal immigrants or criminals hiding from authorities in a European country。 A few of the letters are very disturbing， describing violence， rape， and domestic abuse in graphic detail。 The writers seek understanding and forgiveness for their past actions。 Their tone is fatalistic—as if fate dealt them a poor hand and they had no option but to pursue the path they did。 Barakat’s portrayals are sensitive and nuanced。 She gives voice to individuals denied voice by mainstream society—the criminals， the prostitutes， the homeless， the refugees， and the desperate。 The letter-writers have in common they escaped from their war-ravaged countries。 They are alienated， isolated， and bereft of support structures。 Some generate sympathy; others generate absolute horror。 But all emerge as real individuals suffering from serious， deep-seated wounds。Although there is a smattering of hope embodied by the nameless postman who continues to sort letters in anticipation of better days， the tone throughout is unabashedly bleak。 Its value lies in depicting those relegated en masse to the periphery of society as unique individuals whose powerful and angst-ridden voices deserve a hearing。 Recommended。My book reviews are also available at www。tamaraaghajaffar。com 。。。more

Charlotte Dunn ，

I enjoyed some of this but it did drag on with no real purpose at some points。May BTM readTranslated from ArabicI potentially agree with the Guardian review saying character development is sacrificed for political message。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Voices of the Lost

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Voices of the Lost&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Voices of the Lost&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0