Leave the World Behind – Rumaan Alam
100-Word (or Less) Synopsis: Amanda, Clay and their two teenage children have barely begun to enjoy the secluded AirBnb on Long Island when the home’s owners show up late at night after fleeing New York City. Seemingly cut-off from the rest of society, the group must navigate a sequence of stranger and stranger occurrences while questioning if they are entering the end of times.
Expectation: A racially charged end of the world novel.
Reality: A sure to be divisive, but incredibly enjoyable novel that doesn’t easily fit a mold.
Recommended For: Fans of thematically similar stories, like “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy, “The Mist” by Stephen King and even “The Walking Dead” (there are no zombies or monsters here, however).
Why I Read It: After being nominated for The National Book Award for fiction, and seeing #Bookstagram blow up with rave reviews, I put aside “A Gentleman in Moscow” to dive into this once it became available.
My take:
“Leave the World Behind” received so much pre-publication buzz and adulation it was bound to be divisive, and now that its Goodreads rating dropped over 30 points in a matter of days, it seems that is the case.
Personally, I found Rumaan Alam’s stellar novel frustrating, exhilarating and completely intoxicating. It was easily one of my favorite reads of the year, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.
Its slim length meant I was able to finish it over the course of a single day, and I think that’s the best way to experience “World” as the claustrophobic scenario will unfold for you much in the same way it does for the characters.
I don’t want to give away any spoilers but it’s hard to talk about the novel without alluding to a few, so if you want to be completely surprised, I’d suggest you skip the review, stop what you’re doing and start reading the book immediately.
***Slightly spoiler-y review***
“World” is really a collection of several different genres mashed together. That may sound desultory, but in reality it was a carefully calculated approach by Alam to keep the reader off balance.
It starts as a novel about an upper middle-class white couple and their teenage kids escaping New York City for a weeklong vacation at a secluded and luxurious AirBnb. The early sections are filled with the mundane First World problems you find in these stories – disaffected children, workaholic parents, white lies, etc. – and none of it seems very special.
Then it quickly shifts to an exploration of race and privilege once the Black owners of the home, G.H. and Ruth, show up late at night after fleeing New York City during a mysterious blackout. The eggshell walking by both couples – specifically when G.H. and Ruth are resolute to stay in the home, and Amanda and Clay search for information about them and the blackout – is tense and uncomfortable to say the least.
Finally, the novel ends as one of the most realistic portrayals of how everyday people would react to the world ending. The rationalization, the denial, the slow acceptance and, finally, action taken when it’s too late to make any difference. It’s not too different from how humanity has adapted to life during the pandemic and that’s what makes it easier to relate to the characters when none of which are particularly likeable.
That’s a lot of story to pack into 256-pages (7 hours on audio), but it is important to know this is a slow burn character study that alternates perspectives from the six main characters. It is not a plot driven story.
That’s not to say you don’t get answers. There are omnipresent facts peppered throughout that shed light on what’s happening in the world. This was a smart way to reassure the reader of what is and isn’t real while the characters can only react to what’s happening to them at the time.
As things got crazier (giant flamingos!) my final assessment was the characters were, in fact, experiencing a world-ending event that was amplified from mania brought on by technology withdrawal.
I’d like to read this again to pick up on the clues Alam litters throughout. While we never fully know what is causing humanity’s unraveling, the preternatural behavior of animals, the slow mental degradation and illness of several characters didn’t come out of left field – they were slowly unveiled with little breadcrumbs.
Ultimately, “World” surprised me in the best ways and offered a fresh perspective on apocalyptic thrillers. I’d consider this a modern classic, but I may be in the minority when all is said and done.
Rating (story): 5/5 stars
Rating (narration): 3/5
Format: Audiobook (library loan)
Date read: October 10, 2020
Multi-tasking: Good to go.
