Review by Aimy -- The Expelled by Mois Benarroch

[Aimy]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Expelled" by Mois Benarroch.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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This is a novel within a novel, a story having another story in it and then a lot more to read between the lines. So, if you don’t like solving puzzles or unwrapping a gift which is wrapped in several wrappings, I’ll not recommend this book to you because reading it will not be much different. You can have an idea by reading its summary which is as follows:

This novel begins with the encounter of the main character, ‘the expelled’ (I’ll call him ‘the expelled’ because he is the first person narrator of the novel and his name is not mentioned), with a woman who is identical to his wife, Gabrielle. The only difference is this new Gabrielle is twenty five years younger than his wife. Narrator’s marriage is going through a rough patch. So, because of the relationship with his wife that has gone bad and pleasurable company of the young Gabrielle, he develops an adulterous relationship with the young Gabrielle.

The other story which constitutes the major part of this book begins in the form of a short novel that ‘the expelled’ reads to the younger Gabrielle. This is a story of the people who are on a bus. An angry argument over the use of restroom of the bus leads to the division of the people into two groups: ‘the front people’, sitting at the front of the bus, and ‘the back people’, sitting at the back of the bus. The front people who are in majority take over and start making decisions on the pretext of being ‘the front people’. They stop the back people from using the restroom of the bus, as one the guys sitting at the front says: “we are sitting in front and that we are front people and for that reason we have the right to go to the can (restroom) before y'all.” However, when the back people resist their decision, they give them the right to use it between 3 and 4 p.m. and between 3 and 4 a.m. when the fronts will be taking a nap.

Then, some accident happens and a team of investigators investigates the cause of the bus accident during which a notebook of a boy, who was one of the back people, surfaces. This notebook describes his life as an immigrant in Israel where he is discriminated and marginalized because of being a Sephardi Jew, a Moroccan. He is treated differently by Ashkenazi Jews which makes him feel alienated. He expresses his feelings in these words, “In order to stop being different, I had to stop being born in Morocco, something that no one knows how to do yet.” Actually, Mois Benarroch has implicitly drawn an analogy between ‘the back people’ and the marginalized minorities in Israel who are treated unfairly because they are from other regions of the world, as the narrator says: “The front people all spoke the same language, either their first language or a language they had learned, but the back people, who were less than us, spoke different languages and didn't understand each other.” ‘The front people’ or the majority is deemed to have the right to do anything they want to the minorities. And minorities or the back people are suppressed only because they belong to the back of the bus or another region.

What I like most about this book is implicit analogy drawn by Mois Benarroch between people sitting in different parts of the bus and people belonging to different regions of the world. It’s heartbreaking to see that people are discriminated only because they were born in a different country. ‘The front people’ on the bus assault back people, deny their access to the restroom just because they are ‘the back people’ and belong to the back side of the bus. This can be related to the behavior of the society towards minorities and immigrants in a country where they are denied access to the resources without any legitimate reason.

Main theme of The Expelled by Mois Benarroch, which is translated by Pamela Daccache, revolves around the life of an immigrant in the new society where he tries hard to be one of them but he is discriminated and marginalized by others. I’ll recommend this book to those who have an interest in sociology especially sociology of immigration.

I rate this book 2 out of 4 starts. Although I liked the theme, too concentrated plot for a short novel having three stories along with stories of minor characters made it too complicated. Unnecessary things added to the main story interrupted its flow. Had there been less unnecessary interruptions the story might have been more enjoyable for the readers. I also found a few typographical errors. Besides, punctuation marks were not skillfully used, such as a dependent clause separated by a full stop. This book also contains foul language and there are sexual and erotic references as well.

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The Expelled
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Like Aimy's review? Post a comment saying so!

[sunny abbasi]

The book is reviewed well by aimy...

[Aimy]

The book is reviewed well by aimy...

Thanks dear. I just tried to give an honest review.

[Heidi M Simone]

Great review, Aimy! I don't think I've read many books that are books within a book. This one seems like quite a bit going on, so I'm not sure if it is for me. Too bad about the errors found here. Hopefully, the next one is more enjoyable for you.

[Aimy]

Thank you, Hsimone.

[kandscreeley]

Well this sounds intriguing. It's too bad that it was so complicated. I like stories that flow better. I won't be reading this one. Thanks.

[rssllue]

Based on your review of its contents, it doesn't really seem to be a book I would enjoy reading. Maybe if the author tightens everything up to make it less complicated read. Nice job on the review.

[Aimy]

As it's my first review, your encouraging remarks have made me feel good. Thank you!

[va2016]

Thanks Aimy for the great review! I liked your mention about story being too complex. I think I will skip this book because too much complexity takes away the pleasure of reading a fiction. Also, thanks for the mentions about mechanical errors!

[Aimy]

Thanks Aimy for the great review! I liked your mention about story being too complex. I think I will skip this book because too much complexity takes away the pleasure of reading a fiction. Also, thanks for the mentions about mechanical errors!

Thank you for your appreciation.