Status
Available
Genres
Collection
Publication
New York : Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011.
Description
Fiction. Literature. HTML: Claire Harwell hasn't settled into grief; events haven't let her. Cool, eloquent, raising two fatherless children, Claire has emerged as the most visible of the widows who became a potent political force in the aftermath of the catastrophe. She longs for her husband, but she has found her mission: she sits on a jury charged with selecting a fitting memorial for the victims of the attack. Of the thousands of anonymous submissions that she and her fellow jurors examine, one transfixes Claire: a garden on whose walls the names of the dead are inscribed. But when the winning envelope is opened, they find the designer is Mohammad Khan�??Mo�??an enigmatic Muslim-American who, it seems, feels no need to represent anyone's beliefs except his own. When the design and its creator are leaked, a media firestorm erupts, and Claire finds herself trying to balance principles against emotions amid escalating tensions about the place of Islam in America. A remarkably bold and ambitious debut, The Submission is peopled with journalists, activists, mourners, and bureaucrats who struggle for advantage and fight for their ideals. In this deeply humane novel, the breadth of Amy Waldman's cast of characters is matched by her startling ability to conjure individual lives from their own points of view. A striking portrait of a city�??and a country�??fractured by old hatreds and new struggles, The Submission is a major novel by an important new… (more)
Media reviews
While there is no shortage of American writers who bemoan all that has been done to their nation, by their nation, in the name of 9/11, there has been, until now, a dearth of American novels exploring that particular trajectory (there is a dearth of American novelists exploring what has been done
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to other nations by their nation, too, but that's another matter). There are, of course, various ideas about why this is so. One of them is this: how do you take the trauma and grief of 9/11 as the starting point of a novel and move on to a tale of suspended civil liberties and prejudice without the former entirely overshadowing the latter? Waldman takes hold of this potential stumbling block and turns it into the bedrock of her novel. The grief surrounding 9/11 – the forms it takes, the claims it makes, the claims made in its name by third parties, the hierarchy which surrounds it (not all griefs are equal), the guilt and anger which are born from it, the gulf between the silence of private grief and the clamour of public grief – is central to this exceptional debut about a changing America. Show Less
“The Submission” is set not in 2010 but in 2003, and concerns not a mosque but a 9/11 memorial. A jury, assembled by the state’s governor, has spent months reviewing architects’ anonymous submissions for a monument to be built on the site of the tragedy. Finally, a winner is selected: the
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design is called “The Garden” (in contrast with the other finalist, “The Void”), and its detractors can fault it only for being “too beautiful.” But once the choice is settled and a name attached to the blueprints, the jury discovers, to its alarm, that the architect is a Muslim named Mohammad Khan.
Elegantly written and tightly plotted, “The Submission” ultimately remains a novel about the unfolding of a dramatic situation — a historian’s novel — rather than a novel that explores the human condition with any profundity. And yet in these unnerving times, in which Waldman has seen facts take the shape of her fiction, a historian’s novel at once lucid, illuminating and entertaining is a necessary and valuable gift. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member kidzdoc
Two years after 9/11, a jury meets in Gracie Mansion to vote on the winning design of a Ground Zero memorial, to commemorate the people who were killed on that horrible day. The members, selected by the governor of New York, have narrowed the 5000 anonymous entries to two, and after some arm
Claire Burwell is a lawyer who was selected by the governor to represent the families, as her husband, a wealthy businessman, died on that day. She was the most vocal and passionate supporter of the garden, but after Khan's identity is leaked to an unscrupulous and ruthless New York Post reporter, Claire is forced to defend her decision to the families, the right-wing media, and the governor, who sees this crisis as an opportunity to make herself more attractive to Middle America by expressing her opposition to the jury's decision. At the same time, Khan, a proud man who does not practice his religion but is not beneath using the Muslim community to bolster his claim, refuses to withdraw his name from the competition, change his design, or provide assurance to Burwell and those who support him that the memorial is not a "martyrs' garden", one which honors the hijackers instead of those who were killed by them.
Other characters add to the drama and tension, most notably Alyssa Spier, the Post reporter who first broke the story and continues to influence developments through her incendiary and inaccurate columns; Sean Gallagher, an insecure ne'er-do-well whose brother was a firefighter who died on 9/11, who finds purpose in vehemently and violently protesting the jury's decision; and Asma Anwar, a Bangladeshi Muslim woman whose husband also died that day, and vows to honor his memory by supporting Khan's garden.
The Submission is a riveting story, which became progressively better toward its climax. Several of its characters, particularly the lesser ones, seemed stereotypical and were less than fully developed, and the motivations of the two key characters, Claire and Mo, were not well explained, particularly in their key confrontation toward the end of the book, which kept this from being a groundbreaking and outstanding novel. However, this is easily the best book written about 9/11 or its aftermath that I've read, and I would highly recommend it to everyone.
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twisting and haggling, they choose a contemplative walled garden over an imposing black granite slab. After the jury makes its final decision, its members learn the identity of the designer: Mohammed (Mo) Khan, a highly respected and award-winning architect, born in the United States, educated at Virginia and Yale—and a Muslim of Pakistani descent. The jury members are shocked at the news, most accept it without comment, but several openly seek to disqualify the architect based on his religion, in the belief that the families of those killed on 9/11 and "Middle America" will reject the garden and refuse to donate funds towards its completion. In 2003 the city and the nation are still recovering from the shock of that day, and many Americans harbor deep bitterness and hatred toward all Muslims, regardless of their beliefs.Claire Burwell is a lawyer who was selected by the governor to represent the families, as her husband, a wealthy businessman, died on that day. She was the most vocal and passionate supporter of the garden, but after Khan's identity is leaked to an unscrupulous and ruthless New York Post reporter, Claire is forced to defend her decision to the families, the right-wing media, and the governor, who sees this crisis as an opportunity to make herself more attractive to Middle America by expressing her opposition to the jury's decision. At the same time, Khan, a proud man who does not practice his religion but is not beneath using the Muslim community to bolster his claim, refuses to withdraw his name from the competition, change his design, or provide assurance to Burwell and those who support him that the memorial is not a "martyrs' garden", one which honors the hijackers instead of those who were killed by them.
Other characters add to the drama and tension, most notably Alyssa Spier, the Post reporter who first broke the story and continues to influence developments through her incendiary and inaccurate columns; Sean Gallagher, an insecure ne'er-do-well whose brother was a firefighter who died on 9/11, who finds purpose in vehemently and violently protesting the jury's decision; and Asma Anwar, a Bangladeshi Muslim woman whose husband also died that day, and vows to honor his memory by supporting Khan's garden.
The Submission is a riveting story, which became progressively better toward its climax. Several of its characters, particularly the lesser ones, seemed stereotypical and were less than fully developed, and the motivations of the two key characters, Claire and Mo, were not well explained, particularly in their key confrontation toward the end of the book, which kept this from being a groundbreaking and outstanding novel. However, this is easily the best book written about 9/11 or its aftermath that I've read, and I would highly recommend it to everyone.
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LibraryThing member Beamis12
I recently saw the movie The Help and just finished reading The Dry Grass of August and was feeling very relieved that the 50's and the KKK were over. Than I read this book and realized that fear and hatred is never over. It just changes focus. A jury is picked to vote on anonymous entries for a
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9/11 monument, a winner is chosen but before it is announced it is discovered that the architect is a Muslim. This well written book portrays a society that is not willing to let go of the hatred and controversy that having the first name of Mohammed entails. Show Less
LibraryThing member queencersei
The Submission centers on an artistic New York's jury selection for a 9/11 memorial for the Twin Towers. Upon selected a winning entry, the jury discovers that the garden design they favored was created by a Muslim-American named Mohammed Kahn. At first the jury tries to decide privately whether to
At the heart of the story are Mohammed Kahn, the architect and all-American, secular Muslim. Claire Burwell is a wealthy 9/11 widow who was selected to represent the families of victims on the jury. Sean Gallagher is the younger brother of a fire fighter who was killed in the line of duty. Growing up in his brother Patrick's shadow and never able to measure up to him, even before his heroic death, Sean is able to only find meaning in his life by constantly reflecting and agitating about his brother's death. Finally Asma Anwar, also a 9/11 widow, is an illegal alien from Bangladesh, raising her orphaned son in a country she can barely comprehend.
Despite reading many positive reviews about The Submission, I struggled with it. The two main American characters, Sean and Claire were simply unlikable for the most part. They seemed initially sympathetic, but in their own ways were completely self-absorbed. When Sean wasn't fighting on behalf of his brother's memory or to try and prove himself worthy of his mother's love, he was feeling resentful that wealthy Manhattan women wouldn't condescend to sleep with him. Claire Burwell came from a typical middle-class family and had the good fortune to attend Dartmouth and marry well. Initially she seems quite sympathetic, the widow with two small children to raise. But Claire is totally self absorbed. The stereo-typical wealthy New Yorker, who doesn't work, but still employs a full time nanny and baby sitter, she seems to feel superior to and barely tolerates 95% of the people she encounters.
Mo Kahn and Asma Anwar provide the real emotional anchors of the story. What does it mean to be a Muslim in America, especially in the first couple of years after 9/11? Mo struggles with what it means to be born in this country, to feel himself absolutely to be American, only to have his country turn its back on him because of his name and ancestry. Asma hardly speaks English or leaves her tight night community. She is baffled that the religion she had always viewed as peaceful has been stolen by terrorists. Asma struggles to comprehend how it is that some claim that her husband is supposedly dwelling in the same paradise that some say his murders are also in. Mo and Asma's internal struggles are fascinating and it is a shame that the novel did not focus more on them.
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move forward with letting the winning architect know that he has fairly won the competion, or to try and bury their original decision in favor of a less politically explosive entry. However word soon leaks out, creating a national firestorm of controversy. At the heart of the story are Mohammed Kahn, the architect and all-American, secular Muslim. Claire Burwell is a wealthy 9/11 widow who was selected to represent the families of victims on the jury. Sean Gallagher is the younger brother of a fire fighter who was killed in the line of duty. Growing up in his brother Patrick's shadow and never able to measure up to him, even before his heroic death, Sean is able to only find meaning in his life by constantly reflecting and agitating about his brother's death. Finally Asma Anwar, also a 9/11 widow, is an illegal alien from Bangladesh, raising her orphaned son in a country she can barely comprehend.
Despite reading many positive reviews about The Submission, I struggled with it. The two main American characters, Sean and Claire were simply unlikable for the most part. They seemed initially sympathetic, but in their own ways were completely self-absorbed. When Sean wasn't fighting on behalf of his brother's memory or to try and prove himself worthy of his mother's love, he was feeling resentful that wealthy Manhattan women wouldn't condescend to sleep with him. Claire Burwell came from a typical middle-class family and had the good fortune to attend Dartmouth and marry well. Initially she seems quite sympathetic, the widow with two small children to raise. But Claire is totally self absorbed. The stereo-typical wealthy New Yorker, who doesn't work, but still employs a full time nanny and baby sitter, she seems to feel superior to and barely tolerates 95% of the people she encounters.
Mo Kahn and Asma Anwar provide the real emotional anchors of the story. What does it mean to be a Muslim in America, especially in the first couple of years after 9/11? Mo struggles with what it means to be born in this country, to feel himself absolutely to be American, only to have his country turn its back on him because of his name and ancestry. Asma hardly speaks English or leaves her tight night community. She is baffled that the religion she had always viewed as peaceful has been stolen by terrorists. Asma struggles to comprehend how it is that some claim that her husband is supposedly dwelling in the same paradise that some say his murders are also in. Mo and Asma's internal struggles are fascinating and it is a shame that the novel did not focus more on them.
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LibraryThing member writestuff
“[...]The attack made everyone afraid of appearing unpatriotic, of questioning government leaders. Fear has justified war, torture, secrecy, all kinds of violations of rights and liberties. Don’t let it justify taking the memorial away from Khan. Everything these past couple of years has been
Two years after the 9-11 tragedy, a group of jurors has been selected to choose a memorial design to occupy the space where the twin towers once stood. The jurors include art critics and one family member still reeling from the death of her husband. The submissions are anonymous to the jurors – they have only the designs and no names to make their final decision. After a contentious process, one design is finally chosen and the name of the designer is finally revealed…Mohammad Khan, an American born Muslim. Khan’s selection ignites a firestorm of protest. Should a Muslim be allowed to design this memorial which touches the hearts of so many Americans? Does one’s religion define who they are? Thus begins Amy Waldman’s provocative and deeply emotional novel.
Told in multiple points of view, The Submission takes a searing look at one of the most traumatic events in American history and examines our prejudices and fears seated in religious ideology, patriotism, and collective grief. Claire Burwell, the lone family member on the jury, is a complex character who initially fights for Khan’s design. But political pressure and media propaganda work on her emotions, making her doubt her convictions. Khan himself is an enigmatic character – a man who doubts his religion and then discovers it matters not what he believes so much as the label attached to him.
What was he trying to see? He had been indifferent to the buildings when they stood, preferring more fluid forms to their stark brutality, their self-conscious monumentalism. But he had never felt violent toward them, as he sometimes had toward that awful Verizon building on Pearl Street. Now he wanted to fix their image, their worth, their place. They were living rebukes to nostalgia, these Goliaths that had crushed small businesses, vibrant streetscapes, generational continuities, and other romantic notions beneath their giant feet. Yet it was nostalgia he felt for them. A skyline was a collaboration, if an inadvertent one, between generations, seeming no less natural than a mountain range that had shuddered up from the earth. This new gap in space reversed time. – from The Submission, page 32 -
Waldman includes several engaging characters including a rabid journalist who is willing to twist the truth for a story, a power-hungry politician who finds the controversy is very good for votes, a radical anti-Islamic extremist, and a Muslim woman who is in America illegally and who is mourning her husband who worked as a janitor in the doomed towers.
This is an affecting novel which uses one question to propel its complicated plot. I found the title itself to be fascinating as it alludes to not only the design which is “the submission,” but also examines the process of judgement and the struggle for a common ground which unfurls throughout the novel. Synonyms for the word submission include: appeasement, assent, backing down, giving in, humility, resignation, and surrender. And, indeed, these are words which resonate in the story. Khan is forced to examine his motivations for submitting his design in the face of pressure to step down and give up the commission.
Waldman also explores creative inspiration. From where do our artistic renderings come? Is inspiration a simple process, or does it encompass experience, ideology and something less tangible which is difficult to define? Some characters in The Submission insist on labeling Khan’s design as anti-American and read intent where none may exist. Khan himself seems, at times, to wrestle with the origins of his work – what exactly was the inspiration?
The Submission is compelling fiction and would be a terrific book club choice. It was recently nominated for the Orange Prize for Fiction and I believe it deserves that nomination. Waldman writes with clarity and passion and challenges readers, especially Americans, to look deep within themselves about essential questions related to religion, politics and fear.
Highly recommended.
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about abdications. Don’t succumb to the fear; don’t mistake the absolutism of Khan’s opponents for morality…” -from The Submission, page 226 -Two years after the 9-11 tragedy, a group of jurors has been selected to choose a memorial design to occupy the space where the twin towers once stood. The jurors include art critics and one family member still reeling from the death of her husband. The submissions are anonymous to the jurors – they have only the designs and no names to make their final decision. After a contentious process, one design is finally chosen and the name of the designer is finally revealed…Mohammad Khan, an American born Muslim. Khan’s selection ignites a firestorm of protest. Should a Muslim be allowed to design this memorial which touches the hearts of so many Americans? Does one’s religion define who they are? Thus begins Amy Waldman’s provocative and deeply emotional novel.
Told in multiple points of view, The Submission takes a searing look at one of the most traumatic events in American history and examines our prejudices and fears seated in religious ideology, patriotism, and collective grief. Claire Burwell, the lone family member on the jury, is a complex character who initially fights for Khan’s design. But political pressure and media propaganda work on her emotions, making her doubt her convictions. Khan himself is an enigmatic character – a man who doubts his religion and then discovers it matters not what he believes so much as the label attached to him.
What was he trying to see? He had been indifferent to the buildings when they stood, preferring more fluid forms to their stark brutality, their self-conscious monumentalism. But he had never felt violent toward them, as he sometimes had toward that awful Verizon building on Pearl Street. Now he wanted to fix their image, their worth, their place. They were living rebukes to nostalgia, these Goliaths that had crushed small businesses, vibrant streetscapes, generational continuities, and other romantic notions beneath their giant feet. Yet it was nostalgia he felt for them. A skyline was a collaboration, if an inadvertent one, between generations, seeming no less natural than a mountain range that had shuddered up from the earth. This new gap in space reversed time. – from The Submission, page 32 -
Waldman includes several engaging characters including a rabid journalist who is willing to twist the truth for a story, a power-hungry politician who finds the controversy is very good for votes, a radical anti-Islamic extremist, and a Muslim woman who is in America illegally and who is mourning her husband who worked as a janitor in the doomed towers.
This is an affecting novel which uses one question to propel its complicated plot. I found the title itself to be fascinating as it alludes to not only the design which is “the submission,” but also examines the process of judgement and the struggle for a common ground which unfurls throughout the novel. Synonyms for the word submission include: appeasement, assent, backing down, giving in, humility, resignation, and surrender. And, indeed, these are words which resonate in the story. Khan is forced to examine his motivations for submitting his design in the face of pressure to step down and give up the commission.
Waldman also explores creative inspiration. From where do our artistic renderings come? Is inspiration a simple process, or does it encompass experience, ideology and something less tangible which is difficult to define? Some characters in The Submission insist on labeling Khan’s design as anti-American and read intent where none may exist. Khan himself seems, at times, to wrestle with the origins of his work – what exactly was the inspiration?
The Submission is compelling fiction and would be a terrific book club choice. It was recently nominated for the Orange Prize for Fiction and I believe it deserves that nomination. Waldman writes with clarity and passion and challenges readers, especially Americans, to look deep within themselves about essential questions related to religion, politics and fear.
Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member jody
A lot of things have changed in the world since 9/11, and not much of it good. We are more suspicious of each other, less tolerant, unsympathetic and let’s face it, more frightened than before that fateful day. Not easy stuff to build a global society on.
In this superbly intelligent novel, Amy
But when the news that the winning submission is the creation of a Muslim, the healing process is quickly halted and New Yorkers from all corners take up arms. Families of the victims falter, American Muslims are forced to the fringe and politicians scramble to stay above a growing heap of hostility and xenophobia. It soon appears that the building of cenotaph could create more damage than good.
Waldman has done a brilliant job of casting. She has woven the social populace of New York beautifully into this story, encompassing the top brass right down to the illegals. The social comment is strong and the turn of every page has you pondering the human capacity to reason or not to reason. Our choices are clear, but will we as a global community ever be able to make the right one?
If you like well written, thought provoking fiction you’ll like The Submission.
In this superbly intelligent novel, Amy
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Walkman has drawn an amazingly realistic picture of America’s fears and prejudices left by the fall of the twin towers. As a hand picked jury plays out a power struggle to select a proper and fitting memorial for the site, it soon becomes apparent that few are untouched by the tragedy and its backlash. A memorial is essential for both the city and the nation to recover. But when the news that the winning submission is the creation of a Muslim, the healing process is quickly halted and New Yorkers from all corners take up arms. Families of the victims falter, American Muslims are forced to the fringe and politicians scramble to stay above a growing heap of hostility and xenophobia. It soon appears that the building of cenotaph could create more damage than good.
Waldman has done a brilliant job of casting. She has woven the social populace of New York beautifully into this story, encompassing the top brass right down to the illegals. The social comment is strong and the turn of every page has you pondering the human capacity to reason or not to reason. Our choices are clear, but will we as a global community ever be able to make the right one?
If you like well written, thought provoking fiction you’ll like The Submission.
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LibraryThing member jasonlf
The Submission was like a good Tom Wolfe novel without the excessive description. It presents a kaleidoscopic view of New York as it deals with a controversy after a jury in a blind selection process chose a design for the 9/11 memorial that was done by an (atheist, non-believing) Muslim. The
Every one of these characters are familiar, almost a stereotype, but they are also all presented with an impressive degree of sympathy, understanding of their motives, and a presentation of how they are unsure of what they are doing.
Amy Waldman also does an impressive job of taking what seems like a clever concept and turning it into a full novel, as the plot develops and incident builds on incident, culminating in a every effective ending. And she takes what I still think of as a morally black-and-white issue but finds interesting ambiguities and questions and dilemmas that emerge from it.
The Submission has a lot of good writing and interesting phrases, but it is not an exercise in flashy writing or novel storytelling methods, instead it is more about its range of subjects and the dilemmas it presents. It is not meant as an insult to the book to say that it would be a good choice as required reading in high schools where you could picture the endless discussions of the various dilemmas it poses, as well as a lesson in intolerance and bigotry.
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characters are all familiar New Yorkers: the urbane architect, the widow who was married to an investment banker, the distinguished former head of an investment bank who chairs the jury as a step towards even better boards, the dead firefighter's brother whose reinfuses his life with purpose by rallying against the memorial design, the Iranian lawyer with a foot in the Muslim community and a foot in publicity, the New York Post's sensationalist reporter, the ambitious governor and most poignantly an undocumented Bangladeshi widow of a janitor who dies on 9/11.Every one of these characters are familiar, almost a stereotype, but they are also all presented with an impressive degree of sympathy, understanding of their motives, and a presentation of how they are unsure of what they are doing.
Amy Waldman also does an impressive job of taking what seems like a clever concept and turning it into a full novel, as the plot develops and incident builds on incident, culminating in a every effective ending. And she takes what I still think of as a morally black-and-white issue but finds interesting ambiguities and questions and dilemmas that emerge from it.
The Submission has a lot of good writing and interesting phrases, but it is not an exercise in flashy writing or novel storytelling methods, instead it is more about its range of subjects and the dilemmas it presents. It is not meant as an insult to the book to say that it would be a good choice as required reading in high schools where you could picture the endless discussions of the various dilemmas it poses, as well as a lesson in intolerance and bigotry.
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LibraryThing member CasualFriday
Amy Waldman's debut novel about a Muslim architect whose design is chosen for New York's 9-11 memorial is tailor-made for book discussion groups, but it's more subtle than a didactic "issue" novel. In brief, the (blind) selection of a Muslim's design causes a political and cultural firestorm, and
With a good balance of sociological observation and close depiction of characters' emotions, it's an involving story with an important theme. It's making my best of 2011 list, for sure.
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while some of the players are predictable, others are presented with interesting complexity. The politicians and journalists are mostly odious, and provide some of the black comic relief. The architect, Mo Kahn, is secular, apolitical, ambitious and depending on your view, either principled or stubborn. His counterpoint is Claire Burwell, a 9-11 widow on the memorial jury, whose early defense of Kahn and his design falters when the media trumpets an Islamist conspiracy theory pretty much out of wholecloth.With a good balance of sociological observation and close depiction of characters' emotions, it's an involving story with an important theme. It's making my best of 2011 list, for sure.
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LibraryThing member annbury
Started slow, but ended up as a compelling story, as well as an interesting examination of some of the issues and emotions sparked by 9/11. Set two years after 9/11, the novel posits an architectural competition set up to choose the design for a memorial at the sight. The entries are anonymous, and
The novel looks at the reaction to this event from many different perspectives -- those of politicos, those of relatives of the 9/11 victims, those of American Muslims of several different stripes, and those of the architect himself. Some of the motivations are a little vague, and some of the characters a little flat, but the author has rejected the temptation (with her major characters, at least) to provide characterization in lieu of characters. Some reviewers have noted that it is hard to like any of the characters very much, but I did get more and more interested in them as the novel proceeded -- particularly in the character of the architect.
Some of the difficulty in liking the characters may be because this is in large part a novel of ideas, rather than a novel of characters pure and simple. The characters aren't simple, and the issues are still very much alive. This week, I went to an exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York on New York Activism. The last section is devoted to post 9/11 anti-Muslim and pro-Muslim activism, and it is very clear that the issue has not yet been resolved.
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when the envelope is opened -- lo and behold, the winner is a Muslim. An American Muslim, yes, but still a Muslim.The novel looks at the reaction to this event from many different perspectives -- those of politicos, those of relatives of the 9/11 victims, those of American Muslims of several different stripes, and those of the architect himself. Some of the motivations are a little vague, and some of the characters a little flat, but the author has rejected the temptation (with her major characters, at least) to provide characterization in lieu of characters. Some reviewers have noted that it is hard to like any of the characters very much, but I did get more and more interested in them as the novel proceeded -- particularly in the character of the architect.
Some of the difficulty in liking the characters may be because this is in large part a novel of ideas, rather than a novel of characters pure and simple. The characters aren't simple, and the issues are still very much alive. This week, I went to an exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York on New York Activism. The last section is devoted to post 9/11 anti-Muslim and pro-Muslim activism, and it is very clear that the issue has not yet been resolved.
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LibraryThing member bookworm12
The premise is intriguing. A contest is held to select a design for a 9/11 memorial where the two towers stood. The winner, a design for a garden, is chosen anonymously, but once it has been selected, they realize the designer is Muslim and there is an immediate outcry from the public.
The cast of
Claire is also a 9/11 widow and is a member of the jury that selects the memorial design and is the garden’s earliest advocate. Alyssa is a reporter who continually weasels her way into each breaking story, throwing gas on the fire. Sean lost his brother on 9/11, but the tragedy has finally given him some focus in life. He now lends his time and energy to 9/11 causes.
The book’s greatest strength is that it shows the issue from such wonderfully different perspectives. Allowing the readers to see it from so many angles fleshing out the controversy and gives it real weight. We meet a wide variety of people from diverse walks of life. Seeing it through their eyes opens our own. Writing it this way is essential to make the story work. It becomes a stepping stone to open discussions instead of preaching one view point at us. There is no hero or villain, just people struggling with an impossible situation where emotions are raw with grief and everyone is tense.
The controversy isn't really about his design, it's about his religion. As one reporter thinks,
“No one cared about the design, didn’t her get that?”
I was really glad that Mo wasn’t turned into a saint that’s simply caught in the cross hairs. I thinks it’s important he feels like a real person, flawed, like anyone else, with selfish thoughts and a flaring temper. He’s a normal guy with ambitions. The only subplot I wasn't a fan of was Sean's. I felt like his whole story was weak and uninteresting.
SPOILERS
For me, it was crucial that the book end the way it did. If it had ended in the midst of the pressure and stress of the situation, I don’t think it would have meant so much to me. I needed to know what the characters felt about the situation once they had some distance from it and they weren’t caught up in the fury of the events. I wanted to know what happened to Asma’s son and what he thought about what happened. Ending it 20 years later gave me closure and felt just right.
SPOILERS OVER
The book makes you wonder what you would do in this situation. It’s not black and white and there’s no clear right and wrong because there are so many feelings involved. One New Yorker (in the book) talks about his mind thinking one thing and his heart feeling another, he’s ashamed to feel suspicious, but he can’t help it. What is America if not a melting pot that defies labels? When you mix such incredibly different cultures together, you’re bound to have underlying prejudices based on centuries of feuds. The plot also makes you look at what your own assumptions about people are and it makes you question how easily you are swayed by sensational news coverage.
I think this is a wonderful book, one of my favorites so far this year. I don’t think this is a book that everyone will enjoy. It’s tense and political. I think you could also say it manipulates your emotions, but for me, it was excellent.
“‘It’s falling down, it’s falling down,’the nursery-rhyme words, then the mobile network went dead. ‘Hello? Hello? Honey?’ all around, then a silence of Pompeian density.”
“Jealousy clings to love’s underside like bats to a bridge.”
“… which had seemed so monumental at the time, had turned out to be only a small fragment of the mosaic of his life.”
“Perhaps this was the secret to being at peace: want nothing but what is given to you.”
The cast of
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characters is diverse. There’s Paul, a Jewish lawyer who is in charge of the jury that selects the design for the memorial. Then we have Mohammad Khan, the architect whose design is chosen. He was born in Virginia and is an American. Asma is the widow of a man who was killed in the two towers on 9/11. She is living in America illegally, but her son was born in the USA.Claire is also a 9/11 widow and is a member of the jury that selects the memorial design and is the garden’s earliest advocate. Alyssa is a reporter who continually weasels her way into each breaking story, throwing gas on the fire. Sean lost his brother on 9/11, but the tragedy has finally given him some focus in life. He now lends his time and energy to 9/11 causes.
The book’s greatest strength is that it shows the issue from such wonderfully different perspectives. Allowing the readers to see it from so many angles fleshing out the controversy and gives it real weight. We meet a wide variety of people from diverse walks of life. Seeing it through their eyes opens our own. Writing it this way is essential to make the story work. It becomes a stepping stone to open discussions instead of preaching one view point at us. There is no hero or villain, just people struggling with an impossible situation where emotions are raw with grief and everyone is tense.
The controversy isn't really about his design, it's about his religion. As one reporter thinks,
“No one cared about the design, didn’t her get that?”
I was really glad that Mo wasn’t turned into a saint that’s simply caught in the cross hairs. I thinks it’s important he feels like a real person, flawed, like anyone else, with selfish thoughts and a flaring temper. He’s a normal guy with ambitions. The only subplot I wasn't a fan of was Sean's. I felt like his whole story was weak and uninteresting.
SPOILERS
For me, it was crucial that the book end the way it did. If it had ended in the midst of the pressure and stress of the situation, I don’t think it would have meant so much to me. I needed to know what the characters felt about the situation once they had some distance from it and they weren’t caught up in the fury of the events. I wanted to know what happened to Asma’s son and what he thought about what happened. Ending it 20 years later gave me closure and felt just right.
SPOILERS OVER
The book makes you wonder what you would do in this situation. It’s not black and white and there’s no clear right and wrong because there are so many feelings involved. One New Yorker (in the book) talks about his mind thinking one thing and his heart feeling another, he’s ashamed to feel suspicious, but he can’t help it. What is America if not a melting pot that defies labels? When you mix such incredibly different cultures together, you’re bound to have underlying prejudices based on centuries of feuds. The plot also makes you look at what your own assumptions about people are and it makes you question how easily you are swayed by sensational news coverage.
I think this is a wonderful book, one of my favorites so far this year. I don’t think this is a book that everyone will enjoy. It’s tense and political. I think you could also say it manipulates your emotions, but for me, it was excellent.
“‘It’s falling down, it’s falling down,’the nursery-rhyme words, then the mobile network went dead. ‘Hello? Hello? Honey?’ all around, then a silence of Pompeian density.”
“Jealousy clings to love’s underside like bats to a bridge.”
“… which had seemed so monumental at the time, had turned out to be only a small fragment of the mosaic of his life.”
“Perhaps this was the secret to being at peace: want nothing but what is given to you.”
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LibraryThing member mzonderm
For this story to work, we all have to cast our minds back to 2003, a scant two years after the 9/11 attacks, and remember how raw those attacks still felt. Only then can we all ask ourselves the question: would I have supported a memorial designed by a secular Muslim-American if it had been chosen
Waldman recreates the mood of post-9/11 New York City without pulling her punches. Numerous sides get their share of the story-telling: the widow who tries to be fair-minded; politicos who try to pander to all sides without, of course, ever appearing to; the brother of a firefighter who has made being anti-Islam his personal cause; other anti-Islamists who aren't afraid to piggy-back on the fear of the time, even though they didn't lose anyone in the attacks; the reporter who get the leak about the story of the Muslim who won the anonymous competition to design the 9/11 memorial. If some of these sides are presented more as caricatures than fully fleshed-out characters, that's almost beside the point too as this is a not a character-driven story.
This book has other flaws, perhaps the biggest one being that too many things seem to be beside the point, including things like the motivation of the person who leaked the news about the designer of the memorial, and whether anyone ever found out who it was. But Waldman does well to keep her story focused on what does matter - the conflicts, internal and external that arise in a situation like this. Overall, this is a very well written and thoughtful piece of fiction that could all too easily have been non-fiction, which is something we would all do well to remember.
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under these circumstances? Hopefully, we can all answer honestly that we would have. And if perhaps we wouldn't have then, certainly with the distance of additional decade, we can all say we would now. But that's almost beside the point because Waldman gives us multiple points of view without forcing us to choose.Waldman recreates the mood of post-9/11 New York City without pulling her punches. Numerous sides get their share of the story-telling: the widow who tries to be fair-minded; politicos who try to pander to all sides without, of course, ever appearing to; the brother of a firefighter who has made being anti-Islam his personal cause; other anti-Islamists who aren't afraid to piggy-back on the fear of the time, even though they didn't lose anyone in the attacks; the reporter who get the leak about the story of the Muslim who won the anonymous competition to design the 9/11 memorial. If some of these sides are presented more as caricatures than fully fleshed-out characters, that's almost beside the point too as this is a not a character-driven story.
This book has other flaws, perhaps the biggest one being that too many things seem to be beside the point, including things like the motivation of the person who leaked the news about the designer of the memorial, and whether anyone ever found out who it was. But Waldman does well to keep her story focused on what does matter - the conflicts, internal and external that arise in a situation like this. Overall, this is a very well written and thoughtful piece of fiction that could all too easily have been non-fiction, which is something we would all do well to remember.
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LibraryThing member Narshkite
There were parts of this book that really worked, but overall it suffered from the author's failure to decide what kind of book she was trying to write. Swaths of the book read like satire, and overall the satire is better than decent. But then the book turns in another direction, toward straight
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ahead drama and an examination of healing and hate, and that part of the book bounces between pedestrian and straight up ridiculous. The writer created characters like the Post "journalist" and the Governor who are pure satire, but then she plunks them down in the middle of an earnest allegory. It makes the whole sort of ridiculous. Imagine Buck Turgidson from Dr. Strangelove being featured in Saving Private Ryan. So reading this as satire there are situations and characters which are too straightforward and objective, and reading it as a serious novel which explores America's anti-Islam direction and the ways in which it isolates us it is a book filled with underdeveloped characters. Some of those characters are straight up Snidely Whiplash evil (Debbie Dawson, Alyssa Spier, the governor) and some are imbued only with everything good and noble (Asma, Leila), and not one reads like a real person. There are things to like here, its a fantastic premise, but a surer writer would have been very welcome. Show Less
LibraryThing member bachaney
Amy Waldman's "The Submission" is set two years after 9/11. The committee tasked with selecting a memorial design has chosen, and when the designer is revealed he is a Muslim. The committee then grapples with what to do, as the city becomes embroiled in a controversy about whether or not a Muslim
I had a hard time getting into and appreciating this novel, mainly because it's central theme was so close to the negativity and conflict that surrounds us in America on an everday basis. I believe the novel was believable and well written, it just wasn't a topic that I felt a good connection with. I also felt like most of the characters were unlikable and flat, which made it hard for me to empathize with them. Perhaps I'm just not a good reader for a ripped from the headlines type novel since I pay so much attention to current affairs.
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should be "allowed" to design the Memorial. The novel examines our prejudices and the dark underside of American society.I had a hard time getting into and appreciating this novel, mainly because it's central theme was so close to the negativity and conflict that surrounds us in America on an everday basis. I believe the novel was believable and well written, it just wasn't a topic that I felt a good connection with. I also felt like most of the characters were unlikable and flat, which made it hard for me to empathize with them. Perhaps I'm just not a good reader for a ripped from the headlines type novel since I pay so much attention to current affairs.
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LibraryThing member Samchan
I hate to read reviews in which people say they didn't like a novel because they hated the characters. It just doesn't make sense to me--you should surrender yourself to the story; you don't have to *like* the characters at all to enjoy the story. But good god, this book had some hateful
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characters. So now I'm finding myself giving the low rating of two stars because of these annoying characters. Though he was one of the least annoying, the architect's motivations seemed contradictory and baffling. And yet, Waldman must have done something right because I continued to turn page after page, never once considering not finishing it despite a billion eye rolls everytime a character did or said something irritating. The book touches on some interesting questions related to memory work. Who gets memorialized? What is the role of public memorials? How should the process unfold? Who gets a say? Show Less
LibraryThing member ccayne
This was a book group selection and I liked it more prior to the discussion. I was the leader and no matter what I did, I couldn't steer the discussion off of Mo. This is a plot driven book surrounding a 9/11 memorial. Most of the characters were caricatures and there was too much going on. I think
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it would have benefited from more focus and character development. That said, I believe I read that it was intended as a satire and if true, it works. Show Less
LibraryThing member MarkMeg
Good book, but becomes repetitious. I was able to skip 50 pages in the middle and pick up without missing major elements. Story of the 911 memorial. A jury picks the winner, but does not make the announcement public, only to find that the winner is a Muslim. A reporter gets wind of the story and
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all hell breaks loose. Ultimately, the woman who was in favor of his design changes her mind and becomes the negative force and ends up dissatisfied with the implemented design. The winner finds himself persona non grata and becomes a very successful architect, but working in Europe and Asia. Periferral damage comes to a number of survivor families. Show Less
LibraryThing member SusanOleksiw
This is one of the best books I've read in a long time. The story is very well developed, each character well realized and sympathetic (or not, as the story requires), and the way the plot plays out is very satisfying. I thought the ending was very well done, true to the characters and the story.
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The book also stands out for the beauty of the language, and the author's ability to find the perfect figure of speech. Show Less
LibraryThing member Mathenam
This book should be at the top of the list for bookclubs over the next few months. There are so many issues and themes to discuss. When a jury in NYC is selected to choose a submission for a 9/11 memorial, they are shocked to find that the winning choice is a Muslim-American. Chaos ensues as the
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jury tries to (quietly) decide if they should announce the winner, or choose another one. The results are leaked to the press. Soon the members of the jury, and the winning architect are bombarded by various groups, and protestors, demanding that they withdraw the design, redo the design, or stick to their guns. I thought the author did a wonderful job of presenting all sides of this issue is a very fair way. I thought all the characters were intelligent and patriotic. It was realistic that the press "caught" them in a not so great light. I'm sure that in a heated debate, many have said things they wish they could have later edited. The last few pages were very well done, too. I can see this book being developed into a movie. Show Less
LibraryThing member KatKealy
Very well written first novel. Incredibly moving. Naturally, very sad given the subject matter and definitely a book that might make someone close to the 9/11 tragedy (as most who knew people in NYC at the time were) cry a bit, but well worth reading.
It's sad to see the truth of the way Muslims
It's sad to see the truth of the way Muslims
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were treated after the 9/11 tragedy portrayed so well, but it'd be nice if more people could get the point of the novel. Maybe someday... Show Less
LibraryThing member SamSattler
The Submission, Amy Waldman’s debut novel, is a straight forward look at the raw emotion and political scheming generated by the mass murder that rocked this country on September 11, 2001. The novel, set two years after that event, begins just as a jury is to vote on the design of a national
Outrage, skepticism, and confusion quickly surface even within this jury composed of artists, prominent business people, a relative of one of the victims, and several politically influential citizens. It helps little that Mohammed Kahn prefers to be called “Mo” or that he drifted away from his religion years earlier – his motivation for entering the contest and the influences on his winning design are going to be questioned. Members of the jury hope to find a solution before the winner’s identity becomes public, but when Kahn’s name is leaked to the press, public outrage at the jury’s choice is immediate and loud.
The plot of The Submission is more concerned with how individuals respond to, and are impacted by, a situation like this one than with what the jury will ultimately decide to do about their Muslim winner. Waldman tells the story primarily through the eyes of two main characters: Mohammed Kahn and Claire Burwell, a 9/11 widow with two small children to raise. Burwell, who was the chief advocate for Kahn’s winning design before the jury members knew his identity, is initially his strongest and most vocal defender. But when Kahn stubbornly refuses to answer the frank questions asked by the jury, she begins to doubt his avowed reason for having entered the competition.
Readers who have kept up with recent controversies such as the building of a “World Trade Center Mosque” will not be much surprised by what Waldman has to say in The Submission. They will have already heard from people in the real world like Kahn, Burwell, and Waldman’s cast of less developed characters that includes a ruthless newspaper reporter, wild-eyed talk show hosts, apologists who hold America responsible for the 9/11 slaughter of its citizens, and politicians milking America’s new found patriotism for personal gain. Importantly, however, the book tells a good story that makes it easy for its readers to consider points of view they may otherwise have never taken into account.
My one disappointment with The Submission involves its rather contrived (and convenient) ending. Because I do not want to spoil that ending for others, I will only say that, for me, the story’s resolution detracts from its realistic tone and lessens its emotional impact. That said, I do recommend The Submission – particularly for discussion by book clubs- because it requires its readers to think for themselves a little.
Rated at: 4.0
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memorial for the victims of the terrorist attack that claimed their lives. Each of the designs has its backers, and the vote is a close one, but the jury unites behind its choice until the winner of the “blind vote” turns out to be an architect by the name of Mohammed Kahn.Outrage, skepticism, and confusion quickly surface even within this jury composed of artists, prominent business people, a relative of one of the victims, and several politically influential citizens. It helps little that Mohammed Kahn prefers to be called “Mo” or that he drifted away from his religion years earlier – his motivation for entering the contest and the influences on his winning design are going to be questioned. Members of the jury hope to find a solution before the winner’s identity becomes public, but when Kahn’s name is leaked to the press, public outrage at the jury’s choice is immediate and loud.
The plot of The Submission is more concerned with how individuals respond to, and are impacted by, a situation like this one than with what the jury will ultimately decide to do about their Muslim winner. Waldman tells the story primarily through the eyes of two main characters: Mohammed Kahn and Claire Burwell, a 9/11 widow with two small children to raise. Burwell, who was the chief advocate for Kahn’s winning design before the jury members knew his identity, is initially his strongest and most vocal defender. But when Kahn stubbornly refuses to answer the frank questions asked by the jury, she begins to doubt his avowed reason for having entered the competition.
Readers who have kept up with recent controversies such as the building of a “World Trade Center Mosque” will not be much surprised by what Waldman has to say in The Submission. They will have already heard from people in the real world like Kahn, Burwell, and Waldman’s cast of less developed characters that includes a ruthless newspaper reporter, wild-eyed talk show hosts, apologists who hold America responsible for the 9/11 slaughter of its citizens, and politicians milking America’s new found patriotism for personal gain. Importantly, however, the book tells a good story that makes it easy for its readers to consider points of view they may otherwise have never taken into account.
My one disappointment with The Submission involves its rather contrived (and convenient) ending. Because I do not want to spoil that ending for others, I will only say that, for me, the story’s resolution detracts from its realistic tone and lessens its emotional impact. That said, I do recommend The Submission – particularly for discussion by book clubs- because it requires its readers to think for themselves a little.
Rated at: 4.0
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LibraryThing member kiwifortyniner
The setting of this novel is Manhattan, America after 9/11 has happened. A competition has taken place to design a memorial to honour those who died in the terrorist attack. Entries are to be anonymous and a committee, including family member Claire, who lost her husband in the attack, has been
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formed to choose the winner. What a shock it is to them when the winning entry turns out to be a beautiful garden designed by an ambitious Muslim architect Mohammad Khan. Claire likes and supports his entry. The book follows the ramifications when the committee's decision is accidently leaked to the public. Claire is under pressure from the different sections of the community to change her mind. The perspectives of all of the sections of the community, the jurors, the news reporters (only after a good story), the activists and the family members are all very well portrayed. This book is a great read. Unfortunately beleivable and very thought provoking. Show Less
LibraryThing member amachiski
This was a thought provoking fictional tale that easily could have been nonfiction. The way the media helped shape and stir up people’s emotions was very realistic. I also thought that the author presented all sides fairly. However, there was a real lack of emotion in all the characters that did
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not warm you up to them. For me to like a book I need to connect to the characters and this book feel flat on that for me. The middle of the book got a bit slow and repetitive too. I am usually a quick reader but this one dragged for me. So although I liked the premise, I found it to be a little long winded and emotionless. Show Less
LibraryThing member Bodagirl
A moving and realistic portrait of America in the aftermath of 9/11 and the confusing turmoil that the Unites States was thrust into. Waldman's cast of characters each lend a unique and compelling voice, and every single one makes you wish that they would bend just that tiny fraction in order to
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understand each other. Yet they don't and that is the true tragedy of the book, no one will submit to anyone else. Show Less
LibraryThing member Raven9167
Ten years after 9/11, it's still exceptionally difficult to write about the many issues the United States confronted in the aftermath and continues to work through in a way that does not offend one side or the other. Phrases such as "tolerance for all" and "protect our values" are simplistic and
The premise is thus: what if there were a jury assigned to choose a memorial for the 9/11 attacks, with the process for choosing the memorial completely anonymous, and in the end the jury selected a Muslim architect? No doubt building on the public's reaction to a mosque being built near the WTC site, Ms. Waldman creates an unforgettable cast of characters. You have Mohammad Khan, the architect who does not pray but does not make any attempt to disclaim himself as a Muslim or explain his selection; Claire Burwell, a 9/11 widow and juror who supports and champions Khan's design until she finds she can no longer trust him; Sean Gallagher, a brother of a deceased 9/11 firefighter who feels compelled to fight against the project but at the same time conflicted over how to do this, and that's just for starters.
At the bottom of this book is a tale about what happens when ambition, whether it be the governor's, a reporter's or even the architect's, collides with a collective conflicted intolerance and our human sense of decency. Ms. Waldman makes it perfectly clear how each of these characters feel about their own actions and explains them in a perfectly reasonable way, which is quite a feat considering many of them have polar motivations. I sympathized strongly with Khan, who feels under attack but out of principle does not want to go out of his way to deflect these attacks, but I also felt for Claire Burwell, who is struggling to find a way to mourn and be true to her dead husband while also withstanding the onslaught of controversy that she finds herself in. I even understood the reporter and the governor who were simply trying to make the best of the situation for their own careers. These are all people we hear on the news and experience in our lives, and each of their perspectives feels organic and true.
In no other book, or any other medium, have I felt the issues of 9/11 addressed with such an understanding of each perspective. For this I applaud Ms. Waldman, and I wonder how she can possibly follow up this excellent first effort.
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intended to be all inclusive, but any exploration of those expressions leads to a discovery of undercurrents unrealized that perhaps live only deep within the subconscious or for which we are privately ashamed or unabashedly supportive of. What Ms. Waldman has done with her debut novel is probe these undercurrents through a brilliant premise with multi-faceted characters who are worth cheering for and worth detesting.The premise is thus: what if there were a jury assigned to choose a memorial for the 9/11 attacks, with the process for choosing the memorial completely anonymous, and in the end the jury selected a Muslim architect? No doubt building on the public's reaction to a mosque being built near the WTC site, Ms. Waldman creates an unforgettable cast of characters. You have Mohammad Khan, the architect who does not pray but does not make any attempt to disclaim himself as a Muslim or explain his selection; Claire Burwell, a 9/11 widow and juror who supports and champions Khan's design until she finds she can no longer trust him; Sean Gallagher, a brother of a deceased 9/11 firefighter who feels compelled to fight against the project but at the same time conflicted over how to do this, and that's just for starters.
At the bottom of this book is a tale about what happens when ambition, whether it be the governor's, a reporter's or even the architect's, collides with a collective conflicted intolerance and our human sense of decency. Ms. Waldman makes it perfectly clear how each of these characters feel about their own actions and explains them in a perfectly reasonable way, which is quite a feat considering many of them have polar motivations. I sympathized strongly with Khan, who feels under attack but out of principle does not want to go out of his way to deflect these attacks, but I also felt for Claire Burwell, who is struggling to find a way to mourn and be true to her dead husband while also withstanding the onslaught of controversy that she finds herself in. I even understood the reporter and the governor who were simply trying to make the best of the situation for their own careers. These are all people we hear on the news and experience in our lives, and each of their perspectives feels organic and true.
In no other book, or any other medium, have I felt the issues of 9/11 addressed with such an understanding of each perspective. For this I applaud Ms. Waldman, and I wonder how she can possibly follow up this excellent first effort.
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LibraryThing member AramisSciant
Very intelligent and thought-provoking debut novel. Makes you question what are (or should be) the limits of tolerance and democracy. How far would you fight for a principle without faltering.
The characters start a bit flat and typical to better set the confrontations but as the book progresses no
The characters start a bit flat and typical to better set the confrontations but as the book progresses no
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one stays the same. All characters reveal something not so nice, all of them reveal things about themselves that they may not like (as the reader does as well). I liked that it doesn't give a neat resolution and found the detail at the end incredibly touching. Definitely recommended. Show Less
LibraryThing member JenGennari
wonderful--loved the journalism, the true fallible characters.
Awards
Women's Prize for Fiction (Longlist — 2012)
American Book Award (2012)
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature (Winner — Adult Fiction — 2012)
PEN/Hemingway Award (Nominee — Finalist - 2012)
Guardian First Book Award (Shortlist — 2011)
William Saroyan International Prize for Writing (Shortlist — Fiction — 2012)
Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize (2011)
The New York Times Notable Books of the Year (Fiction & Poetry — 2011)