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unfiltered_fiction's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
I have mixed feelings about this book myself - there were elements of it that were phenomenal, and aspects that felt quite underdeveloped.
I found several of the structural and stylistic elements a little frustrating. A lack of quote marks and use of first person present tense, two of my pet hates in literature, made it difficult for me to properly lose myself in the story. The story is also presented in a highly stylised way, with interludes and choruses, with references in both style and content to Homer's Iliad. I really applaud Mengiste's aim of writing back to the male, Western and white dominated tradition of epic, but I found these framing techniques emotionally distancing and a little forced.
One of the key things I found frustrating was how little agency women maintained throughout the story. In her author's note, Mengiste says that "The story of war had always been a masculine story, but this was not true for Ethiopia and it has never been that way in any form of struggle. Women have been there, we are here now." Whilst she's absolutely right, this book really didn't feel to me like it put women right at the centre of the story.
However, the writing is stunning. It is philosophically rich, immaculately researched, and a distinctly valuable resistance to Western-centred narratives of conflict. It's an especially important text because Mengiste reminds the reader of the very, very recent brutality inflicted on people and nations of colour by European regimes; I have spent years in classrooms learning about the World Wars and their historical, but I did not know a thing about Mussolini's campaigns on Ethiopia.
It's a very important story, but overall, I wasn't a huge fan of how it was told.
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
sarrasegway's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Gun violence, Excrement, and Antisemitism
brgntteva's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Torture, Violence, and Antisemitism
tabitha_isabelle's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
charleyroxy's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence
caseymackins's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, and Violence
boogsbooks's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A portion of the story is also told through the lens of Ettore, an Italian photographer who has no business being in war. Ettore’s story revolves around his father, where his father comes from, and how that defines him. While I was interested in the layer Ettore’s father added to the book, I felt as though Ettore was here simply to carry the novel’s focus on photography as storytelling. Excerpts throughout the book are told as descriptions of photos. This worked well but made me question the role of Ettore as a central character.
This was my final read of 2020 and it felt like such a fitting ending. It’s epic in all of its forms. It left me reflective, cheering for the underdog, acknowledging pain in repeated history, and finding hope in moving forward.
Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Xenophobia, Blood, and Grief
curatoriallyyours's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The negatives: Though I pitied the main character for all she endured, I did not warm to her. The author's style was also quite off-putting and made it hard for me to sink into the narrative until well into the book. If I hadn't been reading this as the final book in a reading challenge (with only a few days to go) I'd probably have abandoned it. The author's refusal to use speech marks to denote speech baffled me and made me resentful for the re-reading I needed to do every time I realised someone had started speaking without the usual indication that this was the case. I don't care to read any more from this author as a result.
I feel that the story itself was worthwhile but the author's style really bothered me throughout the book and stopped me from ever truly being enveloped in the narrative.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Infidelity, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Excrement, and Medical trauma
Minor: Drug use and Antisemitism
emilistevenson's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Child death
bookarino's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence