Monday, March 12, 2018

The Parking Lot Attendant by Nafkote Tamirat


The Parking Lot Attendant by Nafkote Tamirat
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (March 2018)
225 pages, eBook (provided by Publisher for review)
Book Rating: 4 Stars
Content Note: Includes Swearing and Violence

This is a story about Ethiopian immigrants living in Boston, and centers around a teenage girl who befriends/becomes obsessed with a charismatic middle-aged man who works as a parking lot attendant. As her involvement with this man grows, she finds herself at the center of things that are much more dangerous and far-reaching than she could have ever imagined. This story had a rambling, poetic quality that I enjoyed, and the characters were all wonderfully complex. Much of the story focuses on the complexity of various relationships and how our view of a person may change over time. Riveting read! My only complaint would be the beginning and the ending. The beginning I found very confusing, but later determined it was meant to be disorienting, before the story starts to unravel making everything clearer. The ending I thought was abrupt and maddeningly vague—I prefer a bit more resolution I guess. Nevertheless, a very entertaining story!

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