Book review: A Memory Called Empire

I picked up A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine on the recommendation of many of my writing friends. It look me a couple weeks to work through the book due to a hectic work schedule, but when I had the energy to read, I really enjoyed this book.

More than in many fantasy/sci-fi books, I felt like I would be friends with Mahit and Three Seagrass. I enjoyed following their decisions as they navigated the bureaucracy of the Empire. I also enjoyed the depth of the world building. I don't think I could ever create a world as thoroughly researched.

However, the research was also the point that pulled me out of the book. A few years ago my husband and I spent seven hours wandering the Museo Nacional de Antropologia in Mexico City, reading about the history of the Mexican people. Reading Memory, again and again I found myself getting distracted by familiar words and customs. I had a hard time focusing on the world the author built because it was so clearly drawn from truth. And to be honest, I did find it a little uncomfortable to read a book so clearly based on a culture that the author doesn't seem to belong to, especially given this isn't a dead culture, and its inheritors could write their own stories.

Despite that, I would definitely still read the sequel.

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