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abbie_'s review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
It feels unfair of me to rate this so low, but I am trying to rate and review all of my 2024 reads. The low rating here is purely my personal enjoyment - I feel sure that this book has more to offer in print, but I can’t recommend the audiobook if you’re like me and need at least a sliver of plot to hold on to with audio. The narrator’s voice was lovely, but it felt like 4 hours of just unrelated pretty sentences. I couldn’t tell you a single thing of what I just listened to 🙈
diadorim's review against another edition
3.0
Une très belle écriture, intime, imbue de poésie et de sincérité, ce roman aurait cependant bénéficié d’une caractérisation plus claire de ces trois femmes, dont on a l’impression de ne voir qu’une silhouette un peu trop floue.
serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Blue is a lush piece of contemplative literary fiction. An unnamed narrator is travelling alone from Miami to Port-au-Prince, and as she waits in the airport her mind wanders - to her life, the women in it, her homeland and her conflicted feelings about it. She mulls over some difficult subjects such as the way poverty impacts women, but because these issues are not being experienced in the moment, and because the language is so beautiful, almost poetic, it doesn't come across as a dark or heavy. It's a book that you'll read for the vibes, the language, and the imagery, rather than the plot or character development. I listened to the audio, which I recommend, but I would have loved to have a physical copy to read along with while I listened.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Violence
heathssm's review
reflective
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? No
3.0
paperback_tulips's review
3.0
Beautiful, hard-hitting writing that spoke directly to my soul, but I'm not sure it reached its full potential being a novel. It would work better as a collection of poems.
mfheb's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
aliceinreadingland's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
in_atoms's review
adventurous
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
inhisbluegardens's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
4.25
This was Haiti's pick for my Round the World Reading Challenge and a lovely one to start 2024 with.
Blue is narrated by a Haitian woman who finds herself waiting in a Florida airport to return home after attending a family funeral. The whole story is essentially her reflecting on her life in Haiti and how she understands the two parts of herself: one that is desperate to leave and the other that always wants to come home.
She talks a lot about womanhood in all its various forms and the ways in which poverty changes it, makes womanhood smaller, more docile and silent. This touches on a lot of themes in a quietly profound way, like solitude, grief and family. I think the writing style is probably not for everyone as it's very much a stream of consciousness. It's completely non-linear and sort of reads like an extended poem. Nevertheless, so nice to read.
Blue is narrated by a Haitian woman who finds herself waiting in a Florida airport to return home after attending a family funeral. The whole story is essentially her reflecting on her life in Haiti and how she understands the two parts of herself: one that is desperate to leave and the other that always wants to come home.
She talks a lot about womanhood in all its various forms and the ways in which poverty changes it, makes womanhood smaller, more docile and silent. This touches on a lot of themes in a quietly profound way, like solitude, grief and family. I think the writing style is probably not for everyone as it's very much a stream of consciousness. It's completely non-linear and sort of reads like an extended poem. Nevertheless, so nice to read.