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amandawells's review against another edition
4.5
This book was incredible. I cannot thank the worker at the book store I purchased it from enough for recommending it to me. The only issue I have is that I didn’t read it sooner.
laiseabeeton's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
cindyshirld's review against another edition
5.0
I almost did not want to continue and finish reading this book because it just made me so sad and the content is so heavy but I wanted to know the full story of Aminata. I am not well-versed about the decades of slavery but I know it was full of pain and suffering. I can't even imagine what the stolen people from Africa went through and I'm having a hard time to find the words to give this book the review it deserves.
I read someone's review that said the book doesn't even resemble the language of the time period it was set in and it feels really modern. Yes, I agree. It's definitely not how they talked in the 1700s and 1800s but it made it a lot easier for me to understand and connect with the characters.
I read someone's review that said the book doesn't even resemble the language of the time period it was set in and it feels really modern. Yes, I agree. It's definitely not how they talked in the 1700s and 1800s but it made it a lot easier for me to understand and connect with the characters.
islandbrendareads's review against another edition
5.0
An amazing, powerful story, one of the best books I have ever read.
ink_squid's review against another edition
5.0
Very powerful book following Aminata who is stolen from African and brought on a slave ship to the US in the 1700s. She is a remarkable girl and woman of strength and intelligence who endures multiple hardships.
Hill writes a very strong female lead well.
Hill writes a very strong female lead well.
rogermckenzie's review against another edition
5.0
This is a superb book - one - which once started - I could barely set down. It is a wonderfully written tale that vividly reminds a reader of African descent - such as I - about the trials that my ancestors would have endured. I can only imagine (and hope) that it encourages white readers to remember and to stand up against injustice in the same way that a number of white characters did within the novel.
My only slight gripe is around what appears to be the placing of the credit for the abolition of slavery to Wilberforce and his colleagues based on morality arguments. Wilberforce and the other British abolitionists played an amazing role in bringing about legislation to end the slave trade but perhaps, even more than was indicated, could have been made about the slave revolts and the changing economic circumstances that made slavery both ungovernable as well as outmoded.
I think this is a fantastic novel and not even meant to be a strict historical work. I really can't wait to see the TV mini series that will soon be aired based on this book. As my eyes became moist at various stages of this novel I dare say the same will happen when I watch it on TV. Excellent!!
My only slight gripe is around what appears to be the placing of the credit for the abolition of slavery to Wilberforce and his colleagues based on morality arguments. Wilberforce and the other British abolitionists played an amazing role in bringing about legislation to end the slave trade but perhaps, even more than was indicated, could have been made about the slave revolts and the changing economic circumstances that made slavery both ungovernable as well as outmoded.
I think this is a fantastic novel and not even meant to be a strict historical work. I really can't wait to see the TV mini series that will soon be aired based on this book. As my eyes became moist at various stages of this novel I dare say the same will happen when I watch it on TV. Excellent!!
evoss14's review against another edition
5.0
What an superb read. Epic - akin to Roots told from a female perspective. Amidst the pain and atrocities of slavery, this is a tale of hope and triumph. Beautifully written!
amcaslow's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
bsmith27's review against another edition
4.0
Great book about a woman stolen into slavery. A great look at Africa and how slavery shaped it's history as well as a little about the Black Loyalists during the Revolutionary War.
mastersal's review against another edition
June 30 2024 - DNF at the end of part 1
This is objectively a good book with an important tale to tell. Unfortunately I bounced off the writing so hard that it’s making me kind of miserable to read this. Not because of the events happening which are horrible, but because I am disconnected and kind of unmoved. It makes me feel bad for being more engaged with the tale.
There is something in how the book is told that kept me at arms length. Our MC, Aminita is recounting the events of her life and it reads like vignettes more than insight. After almost a 100 pages I know her very little. She is almost incidental to the larger narrative- which could have worked except for the first person pov here. Perhaps a more traditional third person narrator would have helped. Who knows?
I tried this on audio and physically and neither worked. Going to DNF and after more than a decade going to unhaul the book. Perhaps when the time is better I’ll get this from the library.
This is objectively a good book with an important tale to tell. Unfortunately I bounced off the writing so hard that it’s making me kind of miserable to read this. Not because of the events happening which are horrible, but because I am disconnected and kind of unmoved. It makes me feel bad for being more engaged with the tale.
There is something in how the book is told that kept me at arms length. Our MC, Aminita is recounting the events of her life and it reads like vignettes more than insight. After almost a 100 pages I know her very little. She is almost incidental to the larger narrative- which could have worked except for the first person pov here. Perhaps a more traditional third person narrator would have helped. Who knows?
I tried this on audio and physically and neither worked. Going to DNF and after more than a decade going to unhaul the book. Perhaps when the time is better I’ll get this from the library.