Incendiary

A novel by Little Bee (read my review of that book here)author Chris Cleave, Incendiary tells the story of a woman who has lost her husband and son to a terrorist attack on a London football (soccer) stadium. It is a letter to Osama bin Laden, the leader of the notorious al Qaeda and it takes the reader through the mind of this woman and how she deals with losing her only child and husband. She tells bin Laden about herself and her family, "They say you are a FIEND Osama but like I say I don't believe a word of it. I've seen you in your videos. You give me the shivers and you look like a gentleman. My husband was a good man he was a gentleman too. You would of liked him....They say you believe that if your people kill anyone innocent then you're doing them a favour because they will go to believe with Allah. I wouldn't know about that. My husband didn't believe in Allah he believed in his kid and Arsenal football club." Incendiary means "capable of causing fire." To me, that definition strikes true with the story. When the narrator finds out that terrorists bombed the stadium, she is in bed with a lover. She is immediately filled with shame, and goes to the stadium attempting to find her family. But it is so chaotic there that she ends up in the hospital. While the pain, grief and guilt she carries with her never goes away, she tries to deal with the loss of her loved ones. She is a working class woman, and her poor use of grammar and East End slang may be a little confusing and hard to get read, the story is worth it. Creepily, the day Incendiary was published, al Qaeda bombed the London subways.
Says one reviewer, "Even if Incendiary hadn’t eerily predicted the bombings on the London Tube (and hit British bookstores that same day), it would rank as one of this season’s novels to be missed at your own peril." There is a movie, starring Michelle Williams as the woman (she's never named in the book), based on the novel. The trailer for the movie:

I haven't seen it, and it didn't get the greatest reviews. Although, it looks as if it kept to the book's plot pretty well, with the exception of leaving out a character. (Read more about it the here). I highly recommend this novel, it is a truly fantastic look at the post-9/11 world. It deals with the pain of loss, coping with death and survivor's guilt. While it may not seem like a light read, once you start it is extremely hard to put down. Rating: ★★★★★