Martyr!

“my favorite read of 2025! very poetic and beautiful Links to Amazon but buy from your local bookstore or borrow from the library!”

“Read this two years ago, I still think about it all the time.”

“Beautiful prose and an unexpected connection with the characters. Put on a movie for the little ones so I could finish the book on a Sunday morning with a cup of coffee.”

“I have been emailing strangers about this book's promise since +7 months before it came out. If you haven't read it yet, read.”

“Proof I read things by men! If you read this in public, be prepared for strangers to approach you to discuss it (including me)”

“actually listened to this and thought it worked really well in audiobook format. the narrator was incredible and really embodied the characters. one of the best books i have “read” recently and one i will most likely come back to.”

“Read this in 2024, just as I was getting back into reading, and have to credit this book for biting me with the book-reading bug. Can’t believe this is a debut novel. It’s a shorter read but one that sits with you for a long, long time afterwards.”

“It’s on all the “best” lists for a reason. Honest, introspective, beautifully written.”

“I read this book last year during the month I was on my back with an injury, and it absolutely lifted me during a time of relentless pain and monotony. Incredible writing - you could almost sense how the author’s pulse must have been racing as he wrote his way through the end. Literally a healing read.”

“One of the best fiction books I have read in a decade.”

“i read a lot and this book surprised me in a way most books do not. it’s interesting, thoughtful and beautifully done.”

“Literary cool. Written by a poet. Morality, Mother-wound. Read it!”

“so impressively written that it felt like reading a film”

“Funny deep sad thoughtful great ending.”

“Beautifully poetic book about heritage, loss and finding meaning in the rubble.”

“This book has really stayed with me after reading it.”

“Stunning, poetc, heartbreaking and life affirming.”

“Fav book I’ve read in the last few years i dare say”

“This book questions how we spend our lives seeking meaning and seeking answers. A troubled young Iranian boy is seeking answers about his mother’s death and finds the unlikely answers through art and by chance.”

“Upon finishing it, I sat just reflecting on the book for an hour then proceeded to go back to the first page and reread it that very night!”

“Incredible book”

“stunning writing. no notes overall. prepare to be flambéed with émotions.”

“i wish i could wipe my brain and read this for the first time again”

“I read this book in January 2025, and I can't stop thinking about it. Martyr! is the poet Kaveh Akbar's first novel, and the writing is absolutely gorgeous.”

“Very phenomenal book and teared up through the journey”

“Will never not remember reading this on my trip to Maine this summer.”

“Reading hasn’t always been my forte, I think mostly because I’ve always had a hard time remembering what I read or even consuming what I’m reading, but this book was a huge turning point for me and has so much awesome meaning wrapped around in it. I love and will always recommend it!”