Beneath the Lion's Gaze: A Novel Audiobook

" This books was really slow for me. I wasn't connecting with the characters, the story, the writing, then boom, at around 60%, I was like, holy moly, connected. Pretty much because things started happening. For the first part of the book, it was this: Doctor, his family, some sadness because of the doctor's wife's death, and drama because of unrest in the country and the family's disagreements about it. Normal. (Except the parts where...I'm only vaguely remembering this now...the wife was dreaming? Or going to the other side? It was surreal and didn't fit well.) Then all hell breaks loose, which yes, tends to happen with revolutions. There are secrets, torture, death. And it sounds like I'm greedily rubbing my hands together like, "Wheeeee, secrets, torture, death!", but I'm not. It's terrible and gripping and moving. But, dang, did we have to wait that long to get there? "

" I loved the characters and the setting was highly compelling. But I needed more plot. I really really needed more of a plot. You've got to have something happen, and that has to be shown as it's happening. Too many time whenever there was movement in the plot it was shown as FLASHBACK. 8-|. No. "

" Years of terror in Ethiopia following revolution against monarchy tear people and families apart. "

" Well written and informative, but at times too slow in pace to keep me on track. "

" This is a heavy book. I loved the character development, how the story wove together, the writing style. I found it to be a very emotional book, which I didn't necessarily expect. I think it touched me particularly because of the ties I have to Ethiopia, as my son was born there and some of his family likely endured this regime. It is fairly graphic at times. "

" A beautifully written book about a horribly brutal period. Hard, haunting read and one that taught me about an unfamiliar period in Ethiopia as well as the strength of human connection. "

" Couldn't really get into it. "

" I think I've read too much historical fiction/war/torture books recently. This put me over the edge, and now I can't bring myself to read another one that's due at the library this week. It was well-written, but boy, was it dark. I didn't know much about Ethiopia in the 70s, and the overthrow of the country's emperor, so I did learn something about that from reading this book. I'm going to need to read some frothy chick lit for a while, however. "

" 11/10 Well written novel. Based on the Ethiopian revolution that begin in 1974 and collapsed in 1991. The author did a good job of describing the feelings of people caught on both sides of a revolution and the level of human tragedy when ideologies are enforced with terror and force. Sad. "

" learn a lot about Etiopia's history. "

" 2.5 really did not skim through "

" A tough one...as a doctor it raises a lot of questions about the humanity of what we do, or what we try to do...very thought provoking and disturbing. "

" I really wanted to like this book more than I did. It was such hard reading because it was so depressing. "

" For me, this was an amazing book. It was difficult to read because the family endured so much tragedy I know this was fiction but I felt the author told the story of one family and the impact of the political situation on them very realistically. It was very beautifully written. "

" Like any great survival story you HAVE to find out what happens to this family at struggle during Ethiopia's Red Terror...a tale of torture, love and, most importantly, endurance. "

" I sadly missed seeing Maaza Mengiste when she came to OU for a World Literature Today event, and April was a terrible month more generally for reading, but now that the semester is ending I finally went back to this book; glad I did. "

" Not often do you read a book that you know will stay with you for weeks, months or maybe years after you read it. This book is one of those. An unbelievable story about a horrible moment in world history. Beautifully written. "

" What a rotten ending. No wrap-up at all. I think she just decided she was done with the book and stopped writing! "

" A gripper, must read for knowledge of Ethiopian struggle and horrors and nobility. "

" Gripping yet depressing. Is there no limit to how cruel can people be to each other? I didn't want to keep reading but couldn't put it down. "

" i actually held my breath during pages of this book. i loved her imaginative rendering of selassie. at times character flatten into types. and i feel this could have been better edited. the writing occasionally gets bad. but i stopped noticing as the story unfolded. "

" could not put it down...it was very well written and engaging. "

" This is the story of a family in Ethopia and their experiences living their lives under a dictatorship that shows no mercy "

" A page turning book of the revolution in Ethiopia. Historical Fiction. At times very graphic, but I couldn't put it down. "

" A fascinating novel that explores the 1974 revolution in Ethiopia. It heightened my worries and fears about our involvement in revolutions/civil wars in other countries. "

" Sad but educational book about the revolution in Ethiopia. Where was I when this was happening? The historical part is interesting. Hated the cruelty to children covered in this book. It was difficult to read. Had to read lighter fare between readings of chapters in this book. "