I haven’t read many, if any Palestinian-American stories and this was a wonderful one to begin with. It was funny, provocative, and compelling. The main character, whose name is never revealed, is relatable and complex and messy. In fact, I felt so called out- between her bisexuality, brownness, and mechanisms to deal with her otherwise lack of control in her life, I felt like I was reading a story about myself.
I did, however, find this book quite repetitive towards the end. I know it’s a story about addiction, but by the 75% mark I just felt like it was the same story being told with new names. Arafat was tedious to a fault and I found myself saying “just get to the point already!” throughout this book.

4.5! great plot and characters and some of the best prose i’ve read but it definitely did not need to be this long- probably could’ve cut the last 150 pages tbh

truly the only series ive ever read where each book gets significantly better than the last

I haven't read anything like this before. A deeply personal story about 3 best friends, all gay Black men in their 30s, Foley explores mental health, toxic masculinity, and colorism within a community whose stories are rarely told. While moments were difficult to follow and characters were sometimes easy to mix up, Foley tells a poignant story. Dominick moves back to his home city after being dumped and fired the same day. Troy, a school teacher in an abusive relationship, tries to protect his people from gentrification. And Remy is a locally famous relator who has to grapple with his personal success and opportunities with protecting Black Detroit. All 3 of them experience intense hardships and yet their love for one another is beautiful. Foley's writing is funny and playful and accessible, while the story he is telling is real and representative. This is honestly a must read, providing an insight into a particular community that, unless you are a part of you, you probably know nothing about.

DNF- This book was fine. It was beautifully written and the cultural references were advanced. I mostly just found the story unrelatable. An old white, cis gay man talks about pervasive and impeding loneliness, death and change in his life. Nothing happened in the book. The unnamed narrator really just wallows for 200 pages. There's little plot. However, I appreciate The Kingdom of Sand for what it is. It's influential and for the people who see themselves in it, important. I just didn't. I don't really care for white men in stories all that much.

sooo many thoughts my head is spinning i love addie!! and henry! and luc was quite compelling! i do wish the characters were a bit more 3d/complex! (there was nothing really to dislike abt addie and henry and i hate when authors don’t find flaws in their characters). the story was soooo interesting and schwabs writing is amazing! the 2 timelines were so well done!! however, it was quite eurocentric to me. she lived 324 years and never really went anywhere but europe and the united states which is both boring and arguably problematic. also a slight and yet obvious knock off of the age of adeline ! nevertheless!! i still loved loved loved this book! every page was an adventure!!