A book whose merits took a discussion with my book club to be realized. Personally, I was frustrated by the snail-like pace of Celestial Bodies in the first half of the novel, despite the otherwise short chapters, which should have helped it move quickly. Stylistically, I also was not particularly impressed with the novel's prose; whether this is per source or a result of translation I do not know. Add to that a dislikable simp primary narrator and my motivation to finish this novel was nearly entirely sapped.

What I did come to appreciate about Celestial Bodies is the light it sheds onto Oman's history and culture, neither of which I had any exposure to prior to reading. The polyphonic telling of these interweaved stories offered their fair share of surprises, and contribute to our tackling of the larger questions we as a civilization have on love as affected by gender, class, or more generally circumstance. Would, to my own surprise, love to reread this at a later point in life.