Reviews

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo

wuraoye's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

charlywarlywoo's review against another edition

challenging medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

sarahtribble's review against another edition

Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo (the exceptionally excellent pen name of Elizabeth Zandile Tshele) is tough to review in the sense that I appreciated it far more than I enjoyed it. It’s a satirical/parodic interpretation of the 2017 Zimbabwean coup d’état, wherein President Robert Mugabe hastily resigned from office after being threatened with impeachment and his former Vice President, Emmerson Mnangagwa, was instated in his place — except all the characters are anthropomorphic animals, kinda like if Animal Farm and BoJack Horseman had a baby. So, yeah, it's a bit of a weird one, but not in a bad way. The absolute best part of the reading experience for me was the incredible narration — no, scratch that, the incredible performance — done by the audiobook’s narrator, Chipo Chung. She performed her ass off and brought so much life, reverence, and passion to the story, perfectly demonstrating the novel's unique writing style and the texture of Jidada, the Zimbabwe-inspired fictional country in which the story takes place. Speaking of Jidada, the country is often referred to as "Jidada with a -da and another -da", one of many small details that enriches the culture of the story and one of many examples of how Bulawayo utilises repetition to capture the collective voice of the nation and reinforce the depth of their conviction and patriotism. It works in the novel’s favour — until it gets too repetitive and becomes a bit tiresome. I found it hard to make much of any connection with the characters. I know that I, a middle-class white woman, am not necessarily supposed to connect with characters in stories and settings like the one in Glory, and I acknowledge that, but the fact that the characters literally weren't human did leave me with an additional level of distance from them that I found hard to reconcile when trying to enjoy the book. That being said, I do admire what Bulawayo did with her Orwellian decision. The violence and hardship faced by the people of Jidada, the people of Zimbabwe, and the peoples of all nations that have undergone years of civil war and unrest are somehow both easier to digest, and all the more apparently appalling, when they are presented through an absurdist lens such as they are here. So, yeah. I didn't particularly enjoy the book, but I appreciated it very much.

mariodias10's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

mmg2705's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

mikeiswhere's review against another edition

Just such a unique writing style that it became painful to get through. I was desperate for it to end. Then it didn't.

quasimodo_dragon's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

lea_pleiades's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

tomleetang's review against another edition

3.0

Not entirely sure why this roman a clef needs to make people into animals, since Glory lacks the kind of fabular style of Orwell's Animal Farm. Perhaps just a distancing mechanism. Very educational about recent Zimbabwean politics and history. Like the best fiction, it makes the rather dry stuff of the news bristle with scalpel-like intelligence and indignation.

There are some interesting stylistic flourishes, but overall creativity takes a back seat to a sort of record-keeping of struggle in countries like Zimbabwe for glory, "the kind of glory that burns eternal and glows with living light."

jambo__07's review against another edition

dark informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0