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A review by pineconek
Hotline by Dimitri Nasrallah
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I love stumbling upon gems that I wouldn't have picked up otherwise (and I love my libraries).
See, my libraries sometimes make unlimited licenses of an ebook and/or audiobook available for a few weeks, usually in partnership with a federal or international book club. Hotline was that book last month, so I borrowed it in a "will read it I have time - if not, no biggie" way. And then I finished it in under 24 hours.
Hotline follows Muna, a Lebanese woman who move to Montreal with her eight year old son in the late 80s. To make ends meet, she works for a not-quite-not-predatory call center in a company providing meal kits and dietary advice to people wanting to lose weight. She navigates the reality of immigration, poverty, Canadian weather, helping her child adjust, language barriers, education barriers, racism, feeling invisible in a new society, working a job with ridiculously high turnover, and isolation following trauma and tragedy.
I'm not surprised that this gripped me. Firstly, it was tremendous to read about parts of Montreal that I love and know well (the shoutouts to the used bookstore, the Word, warmed my heart). Secondly, as a child of immigrants, I warm to good immigration stories. And finally, this was genuinely just a really great read. The author' inspiration was his own mother's story, and it shows.
Recommended if you're interested in stories of resilience in the face of immigration, love the city of Montreal (but maybe not its ice storms), and want to have your heart broken by the things that immigrant parents endure for their children. 4.75 stars on SG rounded up to 5 on GR.
See, my libraries sometimes make unlimited licenses of an ebook and/or audiobook available for a few weeks, usually in partnership with a federal or international book club. Hotline was that book last month, so I borrowed it in a "will read it I have time - if not, no biggie" way. And then I finished it in under 24 hours.
Hotline follows Muna, a Lebanese woman who move to Montreal with her eight year old son in the late 80s. To make ends meet, she works for a not-quite-not-predatory call center in a company providing meal kits and dietary advice to people wanting to lose weight. She navigates the reality of immigration, poverty, Canadian weather, helping her child adjust, language barriers, education barriers, racism, feeling invisible in a new society, working a job with ridiculously high turnover, and isolation following trauma and tragedy.
I'm not surprised that this gripped me. Firstly, it was tremendous to read about parts of Montreal that I love and know well (the shoutouts to the used bookstore, the Word, warmed my heart). Secondly, as a child of immigrants, I warm to good immigration stories. And finally, this was genuinely just a really great read. The author' inspiration was his own mother's story, and it shows.
Recommended if you're interested in stories of resilience in the face of immigration, love the city of Montreal (but maybe not its ice storms), and want to have your heart broken by the things that immigrant parents endure for their children. 4.75 stars on SG rounded up to 5 on GR.