starrymaze's review against another edition
3.0
This was an easy book for me to read. I think being able to relate in some way to the characters, or finding them believable, helps. It's a sad story. It's one that alludes to how much our lives can be influenced by others. For my simple mind, it's a story about loss, missed opportunities, stubbornness, and strange love within a family unit.
missberlyreads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
cokechukwu's review against another edition
4.0
In the end, I wanted to shake both Penelope and Mirella hard, and then pull them into a hug. Both beautifully flawed, complex, and dynamic characters. I'm still gathering my thoughts on this one, but I can't wait for everyone to read this come January.
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Full review 12/23: Looking back, it is fitting that I binge-read Halsey Street the same weekend that I binge-watched She's Gotta Have It, the Spike Lee-directed television series based on his film from the 1980s. Both feature black Millennial women stumbling as they try to figure out the direction of their professional and personal lives, against the backdrop of gentrifying Brooklyn. Nola Darling and Penelope Grand are both complex characters—at times incredibly frustrating, often very relatable, and ultimately deeply flawed (i.e., human).
I don't want to compare the book and the show too much, because I loved them both in different ways. But what they share, and what spoke to me most about this novel, is a deep sense of place: Brooklyn is vibrant and dynamic, a character in its own right that means different things to each person who encounters it. Like Jacqueline Woodson's Another Brooklyn, this book was transportive in the way all good stories are.
In addition, I thought the development of the family dynamics at the center of this story, especially the painful, complicated mother-daughter relationship between Penelope and Mirella, was skillfully done. I've read few books that focus on the internal life of a mother, particularly a mother like Mirella who chooses her own freedom and (sort of?) happiness over her husband and daughter. Generally, I don't like when novels switch character perspectives, but here it felt right and necessary. I needed Mirella's point of view and voice in order to empathize with her and understand her.
I really enjoyed Halsey Street. It is introspective and empathetic, in addition to being beautifully and assuredly written. I look forward to reading whatever Coster comes up with next.
Thanks to Little A and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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Full review 12/23: Looking back, it is fitting that I binge-read Halsey Street the same weekend that I binge-watched She's Gotta Have It, the Spike Lee-directed television series based on his film from the 1980s. Both feature black Millennial women stumbling as they try to figure out the direction of their professional and personal lives, against the backdrop of gentrifying Brooklyn. Nola Darling and Penelope Grand are both complex characters—at times incredibly frustrating, often very relatable, and ultimately deeply flawed (i.e., human).
I don't want to compare the book and the show too much, because I loved them both in different ways. But what they share, and what spoke to me most about this novel, is a deep sense of place: Brooklyn is vibrant and dynamic, a character in its own right that means different things to each person who encounters it. Like Jacqueline Woodson's Another Brooklyn, this book was transportive in the way all good stories are.
In addition, I thought the development of the family dynamics at the center of this story, especially the painful, complicated mother-daughter relationship between Penelope and Mirella, was skillfully done. I've read few books that focus on the internal life of a mother, particularly a mother like Mirella who chooses her own freedom and (sort of?) happiness over her husband and daughter. Generally, I don't like when novels switch character perspectives, but here it felt right and necessary. I needed Mirella's point of view and voice in order to empathize with her and understand her.
Spoiler
My main critique of this book is that the ending of the Mirella-Penelope relationship felt somewhat unsatisfying. I think I wanted more closure, but I guess it is realistic that you don't always get it.I really enjoyed Halsey Street. It is introspective and empathetic, in addition to being beautifully and assuredly written. I look forward to reading whatever Coster comes up with next.
Thanks to Little A and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
kellymannion'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
4.5
akingston5's review against another edition
“Why steep in someone else’s disappointment? Why linger where you aren’t wanted?”
•••
I’ll be honest, I didn’t love this book. I felt like it couldn’t make its mind up about what it was saying, and the differing perspectives didn’t work here quite as well as I’d hoped. Many plot points I could see coming from far off, and even with so much focus on family it all still felt murky at the end, like there were still things needing ironing out. It also was a little confusing to follow timelines at certain points, to know what happened in the past and in the present.
•••
I’ll be honest, I didn’t love this book. I felt like it couldn’t make its mind up about what it was saying, and the differing perspectives didn’t work here quite as well as I’d hoped. Many plot points I could see coming from far off, and even with so much focus on family it all still felt murky at the end, like there were still things needing ironing out. It also was a little confusing to follow timelines at certain points, to know what happened in the past and in the present.
djreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jazzypizzaz's review against another edition
3.0
The book has strong themes, and the emotional collisions in the third act were way stronger than I expected which ultimately makes the story worthwhile, but the majority otherwise floundered to find itself.
I had a hard time getting a sense of the characters or their motivations, except at points near the end; for a character-driven novel, this is especially disappointing. Most characters, especially Penelope and Mirella, were profoundly unlikable difficult people -- this should be refreshing and fascinating in that there's a profound need for complicated portrayals of women. However, I had a hard time connecting the women's inner lives with their actions. The contradictions of complicated characters can create a sense of human depth, but the contradictions of shallowly drawn characters just feels confusing. Additionally, the writing style is serviceable but generally unremarkable/generic, and the constant descriptions of every mundane pair of gloves or glass of gin try to be more literary than they come across sometimes.
There are some interesting insights on home and family, and I particularly loved how gentrification in Brooklyn was paralleled with the character's changing relationships/lives. You can't go home again just like you can't go back to childhood -- maybe because it never felt quite like home to begin with; maybe because even if you are stuck in a rut, other people and places will continue to change. What do you do when that change is scary or terrible or opens you up to pain, BUT how it used to be, how it seemed like it would always be, is not a viable or ideal option anyway? Gentrification pushes out local history and destroys residents' lives, but is difficult to stop and conditions certainly weren't rosy-colored before; Ralph's condition deteriorating and Mirella reaching out to her daughter both terrify Penelope in different ways, but her relationship with them as a child before that change was never a complete force of positive anyway.
There are also interesting thoughts also on how, for better or worse, home is both a physical location and emotional one, with relationships to family, and how a disconnection with this sense of "home" also meant for the characters disconnection with their own lives and direction. This comes across in: Ralph with losing his shop and Mirella; Mirella with leaving the DR campo but also feeling out of place in NYC and with her family; Penelope, who distances herself from everyone connected with her and every place she lives. Ultimately, it's this last thread that doesn't quite work for me. Having a main character that is completely disconnected from herself and her roots and her own daily life could be compelling, even if this serves to make the reader feel as lost as the character, but for the most part it made me too disconnected from the story to engage with as much emotional depth as it warranted. Penelope and Mirealla are apathetic and distanced from much of their own lives, but as a reader I don't want to feel apathetic or distanced from the characters.
I had a hard time getting a sense of the characters or their motivations, except at points near the end; for a character-driven novel, this is especially disappointing. Most characters, especially Penelope and Mirella, were profoundly unlikable difficult people -- this should be refreshing and fascinating in that there's a profound need for complicated portrayals of women. However, I had a hard time connecting the women's inner lives with their actions. The contradictions of complicated characters can create a sense of human depth, but the contradictions of shallowly drawn characters just feels confusing. Additionally, the writing style is serviceable but generally unremarkable/generic, and the constant descriptions of every mundane pair of gloves or glass of gin try to be more literary than they come across sometimes.
There are some interesting insights on home and family, and I particularly loved how gentrification in Brooklyn was paralleled with the character's changing relationships/lives. You can't go home again just like you can't go back to childhood -- maybe because it never felt quite like home to begin with; maybe because even if you are stuck in a rut, other people and places will continue to change. What do you do when that change is scary or terrible or opens you up to pain, BUT how it used to be, how it seemed like it would always be, is not a viable or ideal option anyway? Gentrification pushes out local history and destroys residents' lives, but is difficult to stop and conditions certainly weren't rosy-colored before; Ralph's condition deteriorating and Mirella reaching out to her daughter both terrify Penelope in different ways, but her relationship with them as a child before that change was never a complete force of positive anyway.
There are also interesting thoughts also on how, for better or worse, home is both a physical location and emotional one, with relationships to family, and how a disconnection with this sense of "home" also meant for the characters disconnection with their own lives and direction. This comes across in: Ralph with losing his shop and Mirella; Mirella with leaving the DR campo but also feeling out of place in NYC and with her family; Penelope, who distances herself from everyone connected with her and every place she lives. Ultimately, it's this last thread that doesn't quite work for me. Having a main character that is completely disconnected from herself and her roots and her own daily life could be compelling, even if this serves to make the reader feel as lost as the character, but for the most part it made me too disconnected from the story to engage with as much emotional depth as it warranted. Penelope and Mirealla are apathetic and distanced from much of their own lives, but as a reader I don't want to feel apathetic or distanced from the characters.
glendaleereads's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a reminder that time is no ones friend. I found myself getting annoyed and frustrated with the characters Penelope and her mother Mirella, because there was so much hurt and words that needed to be said for healing and both mother and daughter with that Dominican stubbornness refused to do so.
But I also found myself understanding a lot of the hurt that reasons why they refused to be open with their emotions. Mirella was a woman who wanted to love her daughter but she was still a girl herself trying to learn how to express herself and be a mother at the same time. It did not help that she had a husband who was older and so fixated on his business.
Penelope made some bad calls in this novel but I found myself wanting to hug her towards the middle of the story because she was a lost girl who needed healing.
Overall, I enjoyed this story and it was nice to read about a story that took place in familiar territory.
But I also found myself understanding a lot of the hurt that reasons why they refused to be open with their emotions. Mirella was a woman who wanted to love her daughter but she was still a girl herself trying to learn how to express herself and be a mother at the same time. It did not help that she had a husband who was older and so fixated on his business.
Penelope made some bad calls in this novel but I found myself wanting to hug her towards the middle of the story because she was a lost girl who needed healing.
Overall, I enjoyed this story and it was nice to read about a story that took place in familiar territory.
blkbbyfem's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Pros: great writing, the ability to show the characters outside of their familial identity, authentic setting, the moment at the end where they deal with grief
Cons: the one character I liked didn’t show up until about halfway through, unlikeable characters (even tho this may have been intentional), hard to feel sympathetic for the characters
Neutral: slow paced
Cons: the one character I liked didn’t show up until about halfway through, unlikeable characters (even tho this may have been intentional), hard to feel sympathetic for the characters
Neutral: slow paced