Reviews

Hum if you don't know the words by Bianca Marais

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jmkummer's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

jaina8851's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

3.5

Mixed feelings about this book. I really didn't care for the way Robin's narrative was handled. I can't help but compare this to A Map of Salt and Stars, where the POV narrator was about the same age as Robin and it was absolutely beautifully done. Robin oscillates between insufferably young (with way too many Rugrats-esque misunderstandings of words that are unfamiliar to her, Julie-ism, really?) and much too old for her intended age. I was hoping for something in the author's notes about the author's own upbringing that might soften the way I felt about the character, but no such luck. I really loved the chapters from Beauty's POV, but also felt complicated about those, since the author is white, and it felt odd learning about the aspects of South Africa that were highlighted in her chapters from a white perspective. I enjoyed the story for the most part (though I felt like the plot jumped the shark pretty hard at the end), and it was a really quick read.

bgw's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

bethberry18's review against another edition

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4.0

Starts out kind of slow but I was hooked by the middle. I want to read more from this author! One of my favorites from the year!

dllh's review against another edition

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3.0

I did enjoy the book, but it wasn't a great book. Some of the scenarios and dialogue were pretty forced, and it felt at times as if scenes or conversations labeled, e.g., "cute conversation between children who misunderstand the things they're talking about" were inserted but weren't really all that well done. The book had just a few too many stumbles of this sort to feel like a really polished book.

I also felt really conflicted about the perspective and the authorship here. I'm all for an author working to inhabit the perspectives of different people, but I felt a little icky about the white privileged author slipping into some of the characters she slips into, even if it's done with (as far as I can tell) generosity and kindness and positive intent. I don't think I'm suggesting that she shouldn't have done it or that she didn't do it reasonably well, but just that it made me a little uncomfortable and influenced my reception of the book.

And finally, I would like to've learned more of the history of apartheid and the Soweto uprising. I suppose that's just a disconnect between the author's intent and (part of) my aim here and the author's not really to blame for my mistaken expectations.

I certainly don't regret reading the book. It was a perfectly nice book and I did enjoy parts of it and learn some things I hadn't known from it (or, from Googling them), but it wasn't a book I'll remember especially fondly or that really appealed to me a lot.

annebennett1957's review against another edition

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4.0

Apartheid was such an ugly chapter in the lives of South Africans, I am glad that I am on the other side of that chapter in South African history. When Nelson Mandela was freed and the country stopped their egregious ways, one can hope for mankind, but in 1976/77 that wasn't the case. Young white children were taught to hate and blacks lived in fear of all whites, even those who attempted to help them. Hum If You Don't Know the Words beautifully tells one such story.

My review: https://headfullofbooks.blogspot.com/2020/05/review-and-quotes-hum-if-you-dont-know.html