Scan barcode
lsbonnie's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Okay. There is a lot that I want to say about it.
I don’t think I had ever read a fiction focused on ecology, which is why I was drawn to this story to begin with. What a treat! An American company settling near a fictional village to dig and take all of its oil to bring back to the USA, not caring one bit about the consequences caused by its activities. The water is polluted, the soil is polluted, the air is polluted, children are dying… What can they do to protect their village? Should it be peaceful, or violent? What will happen when they rebel?
But it is more than just ecology. It’s also about colonization.
Colonization has impacted the lives of Kosawa and neighbour villages for decades and still to this day. Slave trade, colonialism, putting a dictator in place who works with the American/European, neocolonialism, … It shows in plenty of small and big ways. It is everywhere. The story may be fictional, but the History is not; it is a reminder (for white people, really) of the violence committed against non-white people when invading countries. I also particularly liked the part with Konga not wanting the help of the Restoration Movement, not wanting their freedom to depend on them, because then are they truly free? “when you're old, you'll see that the ones who came to kill us and the ones who will want to save us are the same. No matter their pretenses, they all arrive here believing they have the power to take from us or give to us whatever will satisfy their endless wants.”
Culturally speaking, it is a truly interesting book. The Spirit, the twins Jakani and Sakani, Juba coming back from the dead, … – all the supernatural and other inexplicable events were gripping but also just made normal. American and European cultures tend to look at these beliefs in a condescending way but here they are shown as just normal, existing, part of everyday life, which they are. Even putting the supernatural aside, the book shows their lives as they are, without the patronizing view American/European can have (“they live in huts omg poor African people!”), which is refreshing.
On another note, as a (white and European) feminist, it was sometimes hard for me to read as there is quite a lot of misogyny in this book. But I also found it interesting because it reflects how some cultures are. You cannot expect every country, every culture to meet you where you are, you have to meet them where they are and try to see their point of view, their history, their ways of living. Just because they do things differently it doesn’t mean that they are wrong. Moreover, the Kosawa community is not completely closed off, I’d even say that it is open to change. For example, even though Thula won’t get married and have children, they still listen. Yes, the impregnation ceremony was awful to read, but in a way they are still giving her a choice (the child won’t come unless she decides to have a child), they are not sending someone to rape her or refusing to listen to her because she is a childless unmarried woman. And they were doing so to help her, so that she would be listened to in other communities. There are mentions of other sexualities and of gender, and while the Kosawa community may not understand they do not react violently or reject it categorically. Honestly, I would love for Mbue to tell us why she included all those elements. I read some interviews but saw nothing about that.
However I’m confused as to why the (tw: pedophilia) grandfather assaulted by his uncle when he was a child was in the story. Maybe Mbue wanted to say that (tw) boys and men get raped too? Maybe it is something that part of her community prefers ignoring therefore she wants to shed light on it? It would be interesting to have her reasoning on this too.
To finish, I liked the writing style. I usually am not a fan of multiple narrators and/or narratives over many years as I tend to get lost, but I found it easy to follow here. I particularly liked when the narrator was “the children”, a whole group of people speaking at one. I will say though that at times it felt like Mbue went into too many details, slowing down the narrative. But I believe that it is worth pushing through, to read the whole story.
Almost a 5*, but I took off 0.5 because of the pace too slow at times and for some details that I consider unnecessary. But apart from that, I truly recommend reading this book, especially if you are white.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Gun violence, Miscarriage, Police brutality, and Murder
aliciawylde's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
lisa00's review against another edition
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War
rachael_jo's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual content
frogggirl2's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
WARNING: Do not read this book if you are particularly sensitive to misogyny or rape.
This book is a beautiful cultural artifact. While set in present day, because this culture is what we would call less advanced, there is near constant misogyny (things like saying a woman is useless if she can't have children, women can't work or remarry when widowed, etc.) throughout. Some demeaning discussions of gender presentation (when they visit the city they mockingly say they can't figure out what gender prople are because women wear pants and men have long hair, etc.) are sprinkled throughout. The culmination of all this sexism is the rape and forced impregnation of a woman who confesses rape is her worst fear, not by enemies but by her own community.
I thought this book was beautifully written with resonant themes and beautiful characterizations of relationships and community, but, on balance I cant say it was worth it to battle through this unending, disgusting, unquestioned misogyny and rape. Ultimately, the men in this community do to the women of this community what everyone else (government, corporations and colonizers) does to them (and so the women are doubly abused). I don't think this is what the book meant for me to take from it, but this is what I got out of it nonetheless.
This book is a beautiful cultural artifact. While set in present day, because this culture is what we would call less advanced, there is near constant misogyny (things like saying a woman is useless if she can't have children, women can't work or remarry when widowed, etc.) throughout. Some demeaning discussions of gender presentation (when they visit the city they mockingly say they can't figure out what gender prople are because women wear pants and men have long hair, etc.) are sprinkled throughout. The culmination of all this sexism is the rape and forced impregnation of a woman who confesses rape is her worst fear, not by enemies but by her own community.
I thought this book was beautifully written with resonant themes and beautiful characterizations of relationships and community, but, on balance I cant say it was worth it to battle through this unending, disgusting, unquestioned misogyny and rape. Ultimately, the men in this community do to the women of this community what everyone else (government, corporations and colonizers) does to them (and so the women are doubly abused). I don't think this is what the book meant for me to take from it, but this is what I got out of it nonetheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Colonisation
kthickett's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Colonisation
mariekeroos's review
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Kidnapping, and Mass/school shootings
flightlessfinch's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
I loved this book so much. The way memories were used to jump around time was really clearly done and didn't confuse me at all which is so rare lmao and I was so emotionally attached to every character. The perspectives alternating between members of the family we follow and the children of the village is stunningly done and I would've been sobbing if I didn't finish this book in sight of the public at work sdkjfds
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Violence, and Mass/school shootings
Moderate: Incest, Misogyny, and Sexual assault
nfoutty's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Classism
Minor: Abandonment and Alcohol
noahsingh's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? N/A
4.0
This was really well-written, I enjoyed the character perspective jumps (which I normally don't to be honest), I love how they were used to expand upon a singular familys perspective on both each other and the events in Kosawa and it's a really heartbreaking but realistic depiction of neo-colonialism/capitalism/etc
The reason this was only four rather than five stars for me is this (spoilers ahead and tw for rape/sexual assault):
1. What was the need to write the twins doing that to Thula? Seriously. It doesn't help the cause if any real way, she doesn't even end up realizing she's pregnant or having the child, she isn't even aware anything happened to her. Instead we just get the off-screen sexual assault of the main character with the complicity of some of the people she trusts most. Is the point just that women suffer from the short-sightedness of misogynistic men? If so, that was already made clear throughout the rest of the book. It was just upsetting for no reason in my opinion.
2. By the end of the book you're stuck with only Juba's perspective and the children who didn't rebel. I understand that the ending was realistic in terms, things like this often don't get fixed. What I didn't understand was the need to finish the book with the perspectives of those who conform to, and even benefit from, the oppression of people who they were once like. There was just, a bit too much sympathy for the oppressors in this book, I mean, what was the need for the Leader to have a tragic backstory as well? I'm sure lots of people who participate/benefit from oppression had some tragedy in their past, that doesn't make being complicit in the deaths of dozens of children okay? People do desperate things in desperate situations, sure, but why not focus more on solidarity? On potentially building resistance with the labourers at the oil pipes, rather than against them? I suppose my issue with this book is that despite the fact that I loved 90 percent of it, those last 40 or so pages of the book really lets it down. There's also quite a bit of skipping key/plot-important moments in the novel while instead lingering in the moments of depression/fear/terror. Which wouldn't be a problem if there was any payoff at the end, even if that had just been seeing the Five/Thula fight back against the soldiers, rather than hearing about it all third hand. Yes its brilliantly written, but the ultimate perspective jumps into Juba and the other Children, means that the final message of the book seems to be one of assimilation into systems of western/capitalism/neocolonial oppression. It lets down the rest of the book.
The reason this was only four rather than five stars for me is this (spoilers ahead and tw for rape/sexual assault):
1. What was the need to write the twins doing that to Thula? Seriously. It doesn't help the cause if any real way, she doesn't even end up realizing she's pregnant or having the child, she isn't even aware anything happened to her. Instead we just get the off-screen sexual assault of the main character with the complicity of some of the people she trusts most. Is the point just that women suffer from the short-sightedness of misogynistic men? If so, that was already made clear throughout the rest of the book. It was just upsetting for no reason in my opinion.
2. By the end of the book you're stuck with only Juba's perspective and the children who didn't rebel. I understand that the ending was realistic in terms, things like this often don't get fixed. What I didn't understand was the need to finish the book with the perspectives of those who conform to, and even benefit from, the oppression of people who they were once like. There was just, a bit too much sympathy for the oppressors in this book, I mean, what was the need for the Leader to have a tragic backstory as well? I'm sure lots of people who participate/benefit from oppression had some tragedy in their past, that doesn't make being complicit in the deaths of dozens of children okay? People do desperate things in desperate situations, sure, but why not focus more on solidarity? On potentially building resistance with the labourers at the oil pipes, rather than against them? I suppose my issue with this book is that despite the fact that I loved 90 percent of it, those last 40 or so pages of the book really lets it down. There's also quite a bit of skipping key/plot-important moments in the novel while instead lingering in the moments of depression/fear/terror. Which wouldn't be a problem if there was any payoff at the end, even if that had just been seeing the Five/Thula fight back against the soldiers, rather than hearing about it all third hand. Yes its brilliantly written, but the ultimate perspective jumps into Juba and the other Children, means that the final message of the book seems to be one of assimilation into systems of western/capitalism/neocolonial oppression. It lets down the rest of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Colonisation
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Homophobia, Infertility, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Animal death