vidyareads's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
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? Yes
Loved it ! Hope is one feeling I had throughout and it delivered!!
letterbetty's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like it. For 200 pages I did. Especially the world building. But then the plot twist/new premise (you’ll know if you get to it) just felt ridiculous and like it didn’t work even on a metaphorical level. I rolled my eyes a lot, sped-read the second half and learned what I needed from the epilogue. Not impressed.
riana_reads's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
My favourite book of all time. Dazzling, spicy, hilarious, tender, audacious, and utterly brimming with love and magic. I don’t know how Leone Ross’ mind came up with such imagery, but I could live in the world of Popisho forever and ever. A truly heavenly book.
missn80's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
anniesmanybooks's review against another edition
4.0
This joyful, lusty, vivid and wild novel is set on the fictional islands of Popisho (from the Jamaican slang for showy foolishness, Poppy Show). And there is much foolishness and mayhem on “this one sky day,” as the novel is called in the U.K.
The novel follows two lovers, Xavier and Anise, who have long been kept apart by unhappy marriages to other people. Anise is a healer of female bodies, but cannot heal her own physical and emotional wounds. Xavier is a magically talented chef whose task is to make each islander one spectacular meal just when they need it, seasoning his food with hope, dreams and clarity. Everyone in Popisho is born with a “cors,” a magical power or talent which is a gift from the gods.
You can taste, smell, and see the magic and beauty in all aspects of island life, but especially in the mouthwatering food and miraculous healing powers of bodies and souls. The island isn’t free of sorrows and pain: Ross is careful to show how sexism, poverty, corruption, addiction, and injustice remain as the dark legacy of slavery and colonialism. But this novel celebrates the resilience of bodies in all their forms, especially female bodies, with an exuberant lust for life, food, and love.
As Xavier prepares for a wedding banquet for the Governor’s daughter, he goes on a traditional “walkabout” to gather special ingredients. Xavier leads us on a raucous romp through the islands, and at times the story feels like a frenzied fever dream, including the scene where all the women’s “pum-pums” fall out of their bodies and need to be reattached (yes, you read that right). You can only imagine the chaos and shenanigans that follow.
There's a mischievous imagination and irrepressible absurd humor to the storytelling, but don’t expect everything to make sense. This is a book that seduces and dazzles, but you have to enjoy both the magic and the touches of gritty realism to appreciate this book fully. I enjoyed this gorgeous, earthy island tall tale much more than I expected, falling for its strange enchantment.
The novel follows two lovers, Xavier and Anise, who have long been kept apart by unhappy marriages to other people. Anise is a healer of female bodies, but cannot heal her own physical and emotional wounds. Xavier is a magically talented chef whose task is to make each islander one spectacular meal just when they need it, seasoning his food with hope, dreams and clarity. Everyone in Popisho is born with a “cors,” a magical power or talent which is a gift from the gods.
You can taste, smell, and see the magic and beauty in all aspects of island life, but especially in the mouthwatering food and miraculous healing powers of bodies and souls. The island isn’t free of sorrows and pain: Ross is careful to show how sexism, poverty, corruption, addiction, and injustice remain as the dark legacy of slavery and colonialism. But this novel celebrates the resilience of bodies in all their forms, especially female bodies, with an exuberant lust for life, food, and love.
As Xavier prepares for a wedding banquet for the Governor’s daughter, he goes on a traditional “walkabout” to gather special ingredients. Xavier leads us on a raucous romp through the islands, and at times the story feels like a frenzied fever dream, including the scene where all the women’s “pum-pums” fall out of their bodies and need to be reattached (yes, you read that right). You can only imagine the chaos and shenanigans that follow.
There's a mischievous imagination and irrepressible absurd humor to the storytelling, but don’t expect everything to make sense. This is a book that seduces and dazzles, but you have to enjoy both the magic and the touches of gritty realism to appreciate this book fully. I enjoyed this gorgeous, earthy island tall tale much more than I expected, falling for its strange enchantment.
iamtaratorres's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best books I read last year, and probably ever, to be honest. Ross crafts a beautiful tale written in a lyrical prose that on the surface is hilarious, absurd and magical. Every word is infused with Jamaican culture and the very essence of the Caribbean. At it's heart, Popisho is a poignant exploration of grief, loneliness, love, addiction, homophobia, misogyny, corporate greed, and the resilience of a the island's people.
This book leave you SHOOK and make you laugh out loud. Minor spoiler, but not really, at one point in the story every woman's pum pum just fell off. Thier pum pums just detached themselves from their bodies.
This book leave you SHOOK and make you laugh out loud. Minor spoiler, but not really, at one point in the story every woman's pum pum just fell off. Thier pum pums just detached themselves from their bodies.
cleobea's review against another edition
3.0
a magical world with magical descriptions of food and nature and bodies and relationships. a worthwhile read that transports you to another world
bibliograflieg's review against another edition
4.0
A delicate, engrossing, and complex novel, filled to the brim with nuanced emotion and experience, captured in stunning prose
nscava13's review against another edition
5.0
I would highly recommend it to my best friend, but perhaps not to a stranger. Ross follows various characters as they interact with (sometimes) subtle and thoroughly unexpected magic. Her sensory descriptions completely transported me into a world that felt ephemeral, and I dropped my jaw more than once. Popisho is lyrical, fantastical, and quite strange; just my kind of book.