demerson19

This excellent book recognizes that our "issues" in the U.S are not easily separated. Eggers uses the destruction of New Orleans with the Islam-phobia of the post 9/11 U.S. to show us how the two intersect. This is a work of non-fiction, but Eggers uses a dramatic storyline to push the story forward quickly.It centers around the Zietoun family, headed by Abdulrahman Zeitoun (referred to usually by his family name). Zeitoun is from Syria, although his wife is an American Islamic convert. They run a successful contractor/building project company which takes care of many homes, including several owned by Zeitoun. He is a hard working man who does most of the work himself, but hires a range of people as the business grows.When the hurricane hits the family heads to safety while Zeitoun remains to save his house and those of his customers. Eggers description of Zeitoun's time in the flooded New Orleans, paddling in a canoe and helping people and dogs, is a beautifully written section. Eventually Zeitoun's Islamic leanings combined with the lawlessness of post-hurricane New Orleans leads to trouble, but to avoid spoiling the story I'll hold back from a further description.Eggers takes a journalistic approach to the story, which avoids it becoming a political polemic. There are no clear good guys/bad guys here -- just people in a difficult situation sometimes doing what is right. And sometimes doing what is wrong.