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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A photographer's view, October 8, 2009
This review is from: The Last War: A Novel (Hardcover)
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I loved this book, but first I want to say that readers who prefer a story with a definite plot, especially a chronological plot, may not care for the style of this book. It's not a novel of the wars going on in the Middle East, although that is the setting. If that is what you are looking for, there are other books, fiction and nonfiction, you will like better. The main character is a photojournalist, not a writer. This distinction is made several times and is important. Her husband is a journalist in Iraq, and friends and colleagues are journalists that have been in India, Afghanistan, Iraq, and currently Istanbul since 9/11. These people are Americans and Europeans.
In photography (one of my hobbies, not my profession like the narrator's) it's really themes that are important and this is why I think they take precedence over plot in this book. Certainly war is one theme and all the destruction it causes to societies, as well as personal losses. Another is loneliness. Flash, the narrator, is still in Istanbul, while her husband is in harm's way in Baghdad. A third is the experience of being a foreigner in another part of the world, especially during a war, and how the population of the other country sees one. How much you miss by not knowing the language (Turkish is so vastly different from English that an American would really be up against a wall). Foreigners can be made fools of or walk into danger without knowing it. The foreigners' world (if any of you read details of the Green Zone) is seen as artificial by the native population, with good reason. The fact that the book is seen through the eyes of a photographer also helps create the setting. Istanbul (and I've only seen pictures) is supposed to be a really beautiful city, half in Europe and half in Asia. Even the airport Amsterdam-Schihpol (where I have been many times) is well-drawn for the reader.
The writing is also beautiful. This author has won prizes. The story does have several surprise twists at the end. I'd recommend this book, with the caution above, that you expect imagery and theme over plot.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
War Journalists, August 4, 2009
This review is from: The Last War: A Novel (Hardcover)
I received a copy of this book from Goodreads (thank you so much) and was very interested since I had been an expat myself and lived in several countries overseas. The Last War states it is "a breathtaking novel of love, war and betrayal". Flash is a photographer and is married to Wonderboy, a journalist. They both cover war stories, sometimes together and sometimes apart. At the beginning of the book, Flash is in Istanbul and Brando (wonderboy) is in Iraq. Flash is waiting for a visa to join him but really has little intention of joining him. Most of the book is Flash's thoughts, depression, street wanderings and indulgences. She receives a letter that tells her Brando has been unfaithful which feeds her depression and inward focus.
There is some minor coverage of the wars, bombings, but it is very minor. There is some description of the towns, cities and countries they are traveling in, but again that is mostly minor. The story line reads a little like a soap opera. I felt like Flash is very self indulgent and being able to spend many months in a nice apartment in Istanbul without having to work or actually do anything seems unrealistic.
With all my travels and time spent as an expat, none of the story line rang true to me. Granted, I was not a journalist, but I did live and work in many foreign countries. There are parts of the story line that seem to be going somewhere, and then it fizzles and never really grabs me. I see glimpses of greatness but mostly just find average writing. Maybe for someone that has never traveled the experience would be different. The Last War could have benefited from some great editing and additional details of the environment.
This book would be a good read for someone that is interested in the subjects of depression, inner reflection and love lost. It doesn't, in my opinion, live up to its hype of "a breathtaking novel of love, war and betrayal".
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Chance of Betrayal, August 5, 2009
This review is from: The Last War: A Novel (Hardcover)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Ana Menendez's novel is her third and most personal.It tells the story of a woman photojournalist married to a war correspondent, and a time in their life when things were falling apart. A letter and a chance at betrayal. A good novel but not outstanding, until you discover that the author, Ana Menendez, was married to a war correspondent, Dexter Filkins, and a letter and a real betrayal occurred. Aha, now this novel becomes much more interesting.
'Flash' the nickname of writer who is telling this story, was a photojournalist in war torn countries. She followed her husband, Brando, or Wonderboy, as she called him to the dangerous places. They worked as a team. Now, he was in Afghanistan and she was in Istanbul, awaiting her papers to join her husband. But, she knows she won't be joining him. Things have changed, some deterioration in their relationship has occurred, and she is sitting waiting for something to happen. They communicate by phone and email. On a day much like any other, Flash receives a letter from someone who tells her that her husband is having an affair, and she deserves to know. This letter changes her entire life and how she looks at and how she feels for her husband. She does not, for some unknown reason, question Brando or tell him about this letter. She tries to investigate herself, but gets nowhere. She seems to be caught in a web of not knowing and not wanting to know. An anonymous letter but it serves as a vessel for all her questions. She stays in Istanbul, stays alone, and visits the city and looks for all of the interesting places and things that this city has to offer. But, always in the back of her mind is this letter. The letter has destroyed her life as she knows it. Alexandra, a woman friend pops in and out of her life and brings her fun and interesting places to go and fun things to do. But this serves as a respite. She does not have to face the music, and she does not have to confront the truth. The times and events of her marriage flash before her eyes, and we learn a little here and a little there. But not enough to completely understand life on the frontlines of war and life with a chance of betrayal..
'The Last War' appears to be written for Ana Menendez to lay out the issues at hand .of a betrayal and a marriage lost But, most of us do not know that, so the novel does not appear to be as interesting as it really is. There is a part of the novel that needs to be told, and the author has left out the most interesting piece. It is well written but there is more that we need to know. I know it, and it gave me insight into this novel. I understand the emotional aspect of Flash and so much more.
Recommended. prisrob 08-05-09
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