Reviews

The Emperor's Babe by Bernardine Evaristo

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afrinhossain's review against another edition

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Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

elfs29's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.25

Evaristo's writing is so cleverly curated, her character formation so dense, that I was amazed constantly by the relentless dissection of Zuleika's character and life. Imperfect heroines are my favourite characters in fiction, and through Zuleika, Evaristo brilliantly explores power - who has it, what one must do to possess it, how impossible it is to keep it, and whether it was ever real in the first place. The novel being in verse is not tedious but gripping, allowing Evaristo to alter the form and use it to more wholly explore the characters' feelings, and every part unveils and explores another facet of womanhood both in the first century and today.

I was the person this world
created me to be, and so were they,
though who I was becoming,
I was not so sure anymore.
Our lives were in the hands of the gods,
though we could tinker with them, if lucky.

audreysdance's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny 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

4.0

martynahanna's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5

Read it for Bookclub in April, and it was a mixed bag for all of us. We liked the play with past and present, and the 3 main characters, as well as the fact that Evaristo's style still shone through the verse. We all agreed though that it was not an easy read, we often lost focus, and would probably not recommend it to others.

I also saw more meaning and depth in it after reading reviews and some academic papers. It was nice to stretch those brain muscles a bit!