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3.5 

Temporary People

By Deepak Unnikrishnan
Temporary People by Deepak Unnikrishnan digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

"Guest workers of the United Arab Emirates embody multiple worlds and identities and long for home in a fantastical debut work of fiction, winner of the inaugural Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing.… An enchanting, unparalleled anthem of displacement and repatriation." —Kirkus Reviews

In the United Arab Emirates, foreign nationals constitute over 80 percent of the population. Brought in to construct the towering monuments to wealth that punctuate the skylines of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, this labor force works without the rights of citizenship, endures miserable living conditions, and is ultimately forced to leave the country. Until now, the humanitarian crisis of the so-called “guest workers” of the Gulf has barely been addressed in fiction. With his stunning, mind-altering debut novel Temporary People, Deepak Unnikrishnan delves into their histories, myths, struggles, and triumphs.

Combining the irrepressible linguistic invention of Salman Rushdie and the satirical vision of George Saunders, Unnikrishnan presents twenty-eight linked stories that careen from construction workers who shapeshift into luggage and escape a labor camp, to a woman who stitches back together the bodies of those who’ve fallen from buildings in progress, to a man who grows ideal workers designed to live twelve years and then perish—until they don’t, and found a rebel community in the desert. With this polyphony, Unnikrishnan brilliantly maps a new, unruly global English. Giving substance and identity to the anonymous workers of the Gulf, he highlights the disturbing ways in which “progress” on a global scale is bound up with dehumanization.

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29 Reviews

3.5
“I feel bad giving this one 2 stars - there are two stories in this collection that I absolutely loved and would give 5 stars to separately. BUT the rest of them were confusing and I didn't understand them at all. I do wish that Unnikrishnan would make an entire sci fi book about laborers being grown as a commentary on people as a commodity! "Temporary People" is a collection of short stories that explore the experiences of foreign workers in the United Arab Emirates. Through a blend of magical realism, satire, and poignant realism, Unnikrishnan delves into the lives of these "temporary people," highlighting their struggles, dreams, and the harsh realities they face. The book sheds light on the exploitation and marginalization of migrant workers while also celebrating their resilience and humanity, offering a unique perspective on the global phenomenon of labor migration.”
“"Make him drive until the immigrant rues the reasons he fled, until looking at the green card hurts"”

About Deepak Unnikrishnan

Deepak Unnikrishnan is a writer from Abu Dhabi and a resident of the States, who has lived in Teaneck, New Jersey, Brooklyn, New York and Chicago, Illinois. He has studied and taught at the Art Institute of Chicago and presently teaches at New York University Abu Dhabi. Temporary People, his first book, was the inaugural winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing.

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