Someone Like Us    by Dinaw Mengestu Order:  USA  Can Knopf, 2024 (2024) Hardcover, e-Book      Reviewed by Barbara Lingens Mamush, an American-born son of Ethiopian immigrants, arrives from Paris to find that his father Samuel is dead. This triggers in Mamush a need to discover information that has been withheld from him and that he has been curious about since childhood. Who really was his father? What made him emigrate to America from Ethiopia? Why was he in prison? What was his sickness? In a very tight time period (only 3 days), Mamush travels from Chicago to Washington, D.C., reliving his past and meeting interesting people who knew his father and who try to help him. Meanwhile in Paris, his wife, with whom he has a fraught relationship, and young son wait for his return. Samuel is by far the most interesting and fleshed out person in the story. This charming man who means everything to Mamush also has a dark side that is never completely revealed. His fatherly ways are somewhat puzzling but give strong hints of an immigrant's daily struggles and dependency on his countrymen. In general, little in this story is straightforward, yet all the information is there, revealed in bits and pieces, requiring us to put it together for understanding. Personally, I could have used a bit more clarity. A delight for me were the photos, which truly demonstrated the author's descriptive prowess. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Contemporary books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews