We had the privilege to instantaneously forget the thing that outraged us today, so we could be outraged by the other thing that came up tomorrow. And I feel like, during the time that I was writing What Strange Paradise, which basically overlapped with the Trump years, that was our default mode. And then the very next day, it was forgotten because there was something else to be outraged about. I remember a few years back, I was reading a story about a migrant ship that had capsized, and the details were horrific as you would expect. A lot of American War was an attempt to write against that. With American War, I was angry at the imposition of exotic motivations and reactions on people who just happened to be on the losing end of a war. The older I get, the quieter my writing gets and the angrier I get writing, which is a strange, disjointed feeling. I was wondering if similar frustrations inspired you to write What Strange Paradise.Įl Akkad: The short answer is yes, absolutely. Rhianna Walton: When American War came out, one of the things you spoke about was how the novel was born out of your anger about certain global inequalities. It is a pleasure to share What Strange Paradise as Indiespensable Volume 93.

Simultaneously a narrative of hope and a devastating portrait of what is happening in our world, right now, What Strange Paradise is an example of how fiction at its best does more to explicate and illuminate the challenges we face than any newspaper headline or documentary could accomplish. Expertly teasing out the strings of exile, pride, greed, trauma, longing, and hope that entangle his diverse characters, El Akkad makes clear indictments without sacrificing the complex emotions of the “bad” actors - the smugglers, the Greek islanders struggling with an influx of migrants, the apathetic tourists, a nationalistic and traumatized military. Portland-based writer Omar El Akkad’s latest work, What Strange Paradise, is a beautiful, angry novel about the migrant crisis in Europe.

Author omar el akkad