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jayisreading's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
This was a really interesting but also tough book to read. Tough in the sense that there is some heavy content, but it’s mostly that there is a lot of information to digest and keep track of that can get a bit tedious.
The story begins with Kintu Kidda and the curse placed on him that affects not only him, but also his descendants. The story then branches out to follow said descendants and how they are reckoning with this curse in their own lives. Makumbi approaches this by dividing her book into six interconnected sections, presenting different perspectives on the curse and how each character understands it. And I love how this is done in the fashion of oral history, recognizing that there will always be slight differences in one’s understanding of something carried down from the past. There was also a lot of interesting commentary woven into this family epic that related distinctly to Ugandan culture and society, the most interesting I thought was the lasting impact of colonialism, especially Christianity.
The book dragged in certain places for me, but overall, I found Makumbi’s storytelling effective and compelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Incest, Rape, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Colonisation and War