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bookishmillennial's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-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
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
“Don’t.
Don’t come out unless you want to. Don’t come out for anyone else’s sake. Don’t come out because you think society expects you to.
Come out for yourself.
Come out to yourself.
Shout, sing it.
Softly stutter.
Correct those who say they knew before you did.
That’s not how sexuality works, it’s yours to define.”
This is a YA novel-in-verse about Michael, a half Jamaican, half Greek-Cyprian young man growing up in the UK, going to college, and amidst trying to join clubs like the Greek Society and the LGBTQIA+ Club, he still feels like he doesn't quite fit in. He finally joins the Drag Club and begins to come into himself.
I loved following Michael's journey, as he named his feelings, had curious conversations with friends, and figured shit out for himself. It was vulnerable, confusing, and ultimately, hopeful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Racism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Suicide, and Lesbophobia
maurice_greenware's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Racism
shayh's review against another edition
At times it felt like the author spoke through the characters to the audience in a preechy way. It did't make them sound distinct.
Your readers can tell when a character faces the audience and preeches your views. It's not a bad thing to have your views in your books, but the way it happened here made it feel like a lyrical blog post.
This happened when the mother spoke about "you're not half anything, you're a whole human," and when the uncle spoke about white fear of Black success. Both topics are valid to speak about anywhere (fiction, non-fiction, online, offline), but they came off in a blog post sort of way in a fictional story.
Your readers can tell when a character faces the audience and preeches your views. It's not a bad thing to have your views in your books, but the way it happened here made it feel like a lyrical blog post.
This happened when the mother spoke about "you're not half anything, you're a whole human," and when the uncle spoke about white fear of Black success. Both topics are valid to speak about anywhere (fiction, non-fiction, online, offline), but they came off in a blog post sort of way in a fictional story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Outing
Minor: Racism and Lesbophobia
summermorning's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content
devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Drug use, Homophobia, Racism, Transphobia, Lesbophobia, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
theangrystackrat's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Racism
solnit_and_sebastian's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Beautifully written in prose, Dean Atta's The Black Flamingo is the story of a young, queer, Jamaican and Greek Cypriot boy from London. The story carries through his first year at university, wherein Michael continues his journey of self-discovery, and learns more about new and old friends that challenges some aspects of his worldview. The intersection of Michael's identities, and how he relates to his family, friends, and the world through various lenses, are a primary focus of the book. Accessible, eloquent, and cathartic, I unreservedly recommend it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Abandonment
Minor: Bullying, Racism, Lesbophobia, Cultural appropriation, and Alcohol
andyourstruly's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I am not usually into coming-of-age novels and am especially cautious of queer coming-of-age novels because it usually spends so much time wrestling with self-loathing and/or whether or not they are queer.
Black Flamingo is really refreshing in having a protaganist who is very assured in himself and has a strong support system at home. Rather than man vs self, it's man vs society and the main character deciding how he will approach the world as someone whose identity lies at so many intersections, which is a journey I feel like we usually only catch characters like him in the "after" phase of, as the side character or inspiration in someone else's story instead of as their own protaganist.
The other thing I really like is how concise it feels. Many CoA stories make us walk through a bunch of fumbles and trauma and awkward mistakes before the protaganist is allowed to Become, and Black Flamingo doesn't make this a prominent part of Michael's journey. He makes mistakes, but the story is about Michael's coming to understand his multiple identities and how to meet a world that wants to fit him into a box, rather than the world teaching him some humility for any misplaced pride.
Black Flamingo is really refreshing in having a protaganist who is very assured in himself and has a strong support system at home. Rather than man vs self, it's man vs society and the main character deciding how he will approach the world as someone whose identity lies at so many intersections, which is a journey I feel like we usually only catch characters like him in the "after" phase of, as the side character or inspiration in someone else's story instead of as their own protaganist.
The other thing I really like is how concise it feels. Many CoA stories make us walk through a bunch of fumbles and trauma and awkward mistakes before the protaganist is allowed to Become, and Black Flamingo doesn't make this a prominent part of Michael's journey. He makes mistakes, but the story is about Michael's coming to understand his multiple identities and how to meet a world that wants to fit him into a box, rather than the world teaching him some humility for any misplaced pride.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Racism
Minor: Rape and Lesbophobia
Details on the minor rape CW: Contains a scene wherefrawst_disasta_reads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, and Transphobia
readingsofaslinky's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
So beautiful. The final pages had me crying. The perfect Bildungsroman.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Racism