Review by Joan642 -- Divided World by Kenneth Pickering

Joan642 · Post by **Joan642** » 30 Sep 2020, 04:08

[Following is a volunteer review of "Divided World" by Kenneth Pickering.]

4 out of 4 stars

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Divided World is a 176-paged book of plays written by prominent playwrights, Kate Al Hadid, Hannah Khalil, and Hassan Abdulrazzak. It was edited and given an introduction by Kenneth Pickering, who also wrote Exploring the Boundaries, a play that centers on the Sykes-Picot agreement by French and British diplomats on the colonization of the countries in the Middle East.

I have never actually read a play and definitely not a historical one. I decided to give this one a try, and I was not disappointed at all. Though there were few things and places mentioned in the book that I have not heard of, I would like to think that it was a good thing because it made me research and educate myself about the Middle East, the wars that took place, and the role France and Great Britain played in it. This book was really enlightening for me, and I learned a lot from it, like the fact that the mask of Warka was one of the first representations of the human face. One of the things I loved about this book was the short profile of the playwrights before their plays. Each play had unique characters and settings. Some of the themes like love, war, aspirations, and lust were strongly felt.

I felt like the playwrights, in their different plays, tried to pass across a similarly strong message about the injustice meted out to the younger generations trying to escape the confines of where the war has placed them. Although it was mostly as a metaphor, I felt this message in one of Kate Al Hadid’s plays, Jump; It was about a young boy who tried to seek permission from the authorities in order to leave his home in Gaza and partake in a parkour championship that took place in Santorini. I also felt it in the monologue: The ship No One Wanted by Hassan Abdulrazzak, which centered on a young Syrian woman and her family, who, together with other families, tried to escape to London for safety from the war; both plays were also my favorite plays.

There was not much to dislike about this book, though I did not quite like the writing style used, as it was a bit confusing. Due to my lack of knowledge of anything about the Middle East, in the beginning, my reading flow was a bit disrupted, as I had to read it over and over again to understand. But after my little research, as stated earlier, I began to see more light in the book.

I recommend this book to the general audience, especially those who enjoy reading plays. I would like to point out that this book is not suitable for children, as it contains some profane language and bits of erotic contents, mainly kissing scenes. I did not find any grammatical error in the book, so I would say that it was professionally edited, and I would gladly give it a complete 4 out of 4-star rating.

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Divided World
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Saint Bruno · Post by **Saint Bruno** » 08 Oct 2020, 06:38

I am not a fan of drama books, but I really enjoyed reading your detailed and found review. Thanks for it.

Prisallen · Post by **Prisallen** » 10 Oct 2020, 07:55

I have not read any plays for entertainment purposes, and this book sounds very interesting. I'm glad that it also forces the reader to learn a little history. Great review!