In Frankenstein in Baghdad, modern-day Baghdad is in a constant state of chaos due to terrorist attempts and bombings. In this landscape, a local man scavenges for body parts collected from various bombing sites, and assembles those into a corpse. But the corpse soon goes missing, and a slew of suspicious murders start happening around the city.
For me, the best part of the book is the story around the corpse. As he goes on to fulfill his mission to bring vengeance and justice for all the people whose body parts he is now using, he starts to gain awareness of what he is doing. He explores whether there could ever be an end to his mission, if those seeking vengeance is truly innocent, and how all his killings can stop. There is also a look at the morality of using innocent people as collateral when seeking the greater good. I found this story line to be insightful and stimulating.
Another part of the story that works well is its portrayal of daily life in these war-like conditions. Soon, people gain an indifference to all the violence and bloodshed, and those cease to shock them. As bombs go off and friends and acquaintances get injured or die, people go on with their every day lives, and that normalcy is shocking and depressing. There is also the constant mental tug-of-war between staying in this city, hoping it might one day return to the beautiful place they know and loved, or leave and abandon all hope and familiarity.
For me, what didn't work so well in this book is its numerous characters and subplots. There were so many people in here that it was hard to remember who they all are, and it made the plot feel scattered and random. The corpse story line was a surprisingly small amount of the total book, with the rest filled up by a real estate agent trying to get others to sell him their house or hotel, a government department employing magicians and fortune tellers, a journalist trying to become more like his boss while lusting after his boss's woman, and various other odd musings. I wanted more of the main story line, and less of all these side characters.
Going in, the premise of this story sounded interesting and unique, if a bit odd. And since this book came highly recommended from a friend, I was excited to dive in. I enjoyed the book for its Frankenstein story line and its exploration of life in contemporary Baghdad. I do wish the book is more focused so that we get more of the main story line and less of all the random subplots that cluttered up what should have been a purposeful and cohesive tale.
Readaroo Rating: 3 stars
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