laurenmidna's review against another edition
3.0
There’s no denying that Ta-Nahisi Coates is an extraordinary writer. Many of his sentences were poetic, lyrical, beautiful. The struggles and hardships his characters endured were brutal, the relationships were strong.
But despite all of this, I found the story difficult to get into. Harim is difficult to relate to, and I never quite understood him as a character, despite the book being from his perspective. The magical elements were interesting, but not quite as impactful as I’d hoped. The story has a phenomenal premise, but I felt like the delivery just lacked a little bit.
As a study for beautiful language, this book should get five stars. But personally I felt there was too much that was flowery and not enough that moved the story forward.
But despite all of this, I found the story difficult to get into. Harim is difficult to relate to, and I never quite understood him as a character, despite the book being from his perspective. The magical elements were interesting, but not quite as impactful as I’d hoped. The story has a phenomenal premise, but I felt like the delivery just lacked a little bit.
As a study for beautiful language, this book should get five stars. But personally I felt there was too much that was flowery and not enough that moved the story forward.
readingwithhippos's review against another edition
5.0
I was very interested to see how Ta-Nehisi Coates’s writing skill would translate to fiction--turns out, the answer is flawlessly. You haven’t read a slave narrative like this one. It’s not just about the story, although it’s compelling enough: Hiram Walker has a prodigious memory, but when his mother was sold and they were separated, all of Hiram’s memories of her disappeared. The day she was taken from him was also the day a strange power took hold in him, a power that might help him unlock the chains of slavery for himself and many others. Coates is so good at articulating the emotions behind historical facts we think we know. I’m judicious about the literary fiction I read these days, but this one is so, so good, it’s truly worth your time. Coates is an amazing talent.
tiepilot_dandy's review
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
books_n_bananas's review against another edition
5.0
I loved so many things about this book.
This very easily could have been a straight-forward historical fiction novel with a simple telling of slavery from a plantation owners black son.
Instead, Coates added so much little glints of brilliant creativity that made this book shine. The verbiage he used referring to the classes and the way he described the interactions between classes was brilliant. Coates utilized Hiram's privileges within the slave community to add a lot of detail and character development that would have been easily left out otherwise.
There's also some lovely other surprises that I will leave out so I don't have to flag this review for spoilers.
Honestly, I loved this book and is an absolute great read if you're looking for something historical fiction with a little more flair and excitement.
This very easily could have been a straight-forward historical fiction novel with a simple telling of slavery from a plantation owners black son.
Instead, Coates added so much little glints of brilliant creativity that made this book shine. The verbiage he used referring to the classes and the way he described the interactions between classes was brilliant. Coates utilized Hiram's privileges within the slave community to add a lot of detail and character development that would have been easily left out otherwise.
There's also some lovely other surprises that I will leave out so I don't have to flag this review for spoilers.
Honestly, I loved this book and is an absolute great read if you're looking for something historical fiction with a little more flair and excitement.
bella_and_the_bookstack's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars out of 5
Review coming soon. ❤️
Review coming soon. ❤️
ashely_nicole's review against another edition
5.0
This Book will forever stick with me. It took me awhile to get through it because I wanted to take my time with the words and digest what was happening. I recommend everyone should read this book! Well written!
subpolka's review against another edition
4.0
Beautifully written - with the actual story being secondary to the language. This is not a complaint.
erika023's review against another edition
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
The author is a very good writer and the surrounding the character exists within is brought with a lot of clarity. His messages are also very clear, but for some reason, this didn’t stand out to me. Maybe because I’ve read books with similar messages that have affected me more.
I would also say the issue for Hiram’s character development isn’t so huge and also hinted quite early on so there isn’t a lot of anticipation on that point to release once everything comes together
I would also say the issue for Hiram’s character development isn’t so huge and also hinted quite early on so there isn’t a lot of anticipation on that point to release once everything comes together
kristineqtl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
5.0
apollo11's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0