red_steele's review against another edition
3.0
Joe Morton was masterful and I hope he receives a nomination for his performance.
I generally enjoy slave narrative novels, however, I struggled with understanding the magical realism portion of the novel. The writing is lyrical and poetic, however, there were slow moving parts that were unappealing. Character development could have been better and I didn’t like how the book ended between Sophia and Hiram. We deserved more.
I generally enjoy slave narrative novels, however, I struggled with understanding the magical realism portion of the novel. The writing is lyrical and poetic, however, there were slow moving parts that were unappealing. Character development could have been better and I didn’t like how the book ended between Sophia and Hiram. We deserved more.
ktxx22's review against another edition
4.0
What an enjoyable experience... after I was a couple chapters in. This book has so much heart! And despite there being aspects of magic in the narrative I walk away after reading feeling INCREDIBLY satisfied by the story and how it all came together. I’m not someone who typically enjoys any aspect of magic in a book that is mostly realistic, but here it was subtilely done and with a lot of care to make it seem as if it might have actually been done that way back on the Underground Railroad! Coates always slays when it comes to research and finding out post read that some of these characters are based on actual real agents for the Underground Railroad, he also provided another book to check out, that I was floored but also not surprised! I highly recommend this book, going to be 4/5
tayloreve07's review against another edition
Excellent!!!!!!! I will admit it took me a little bit to grasp what was happening with the more mystical elements of the novel but once I got it i felt it really added to the overall story. Really good. Even set in the pre-civil war era, it felt very relevant to today as well
mmemontagne's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-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
lpip's review against another edition
3.0
It took me a long time to get through this book—I liked the story, but it was kind of hard to read more than a few pages at a time before getting lost and having to reread. The magic was kind of lost on me—I think it would have been more powerful to see the story play out without the power of conduction, but I understand the significance of memories bringing powers.
m_rain's review against another edition
5.0
incredibly written story! I loved the magical realism moments, the imagery, and the message to remember, even if it's difficult.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Slavery, and Violence
Minor: Rape
brettpet's review against another edition
4.0
I read Between the World and Me in my last semester of undergrad, finding it a beautiful, raw, and effective essay on the hurdles and unfairness of being Black in America. Ta-Nehisi Coates is a talented writer and I was interested to see how his candor would translate to his fiction debut, The Water Dancer .
Overall, Dancer is a powerful reconstruction of the end days of slavery (at least in a physical sense), revising beloved historical figures into deities and adding a splash of magical realism. I think my favorite thing about the novel was the various settings, with areas such as the declining tobacco-stained land of Virginia and bustling ports of Philadelphia evoking adequate mysticism for the plot's reimagined Underground Railroad. There's a ton of other amazing details that add to the feel of the world and make this a unique retelling of the Abolitionist movement, like the Quality/Tasked denominations, Ryland's Hounds, Hiram and Maynard's dynamic, and of course Conduction. Conduction is an interesting fantasy element (not as overbearing as other reviewers seemed to think) and I found myself looking forward to Conduction passages/stories whenever they appeared.
However, I had some gripes with the characters. On the positive end, I thought the Underground agents like Corinne, Hawkins, and especially Moses/ were well characterized and served the plotline well. I felt that Thena was a bit iffy in the beginning but had an incredible arc later on, while Sophia is all over the place as a character. There's an integral twist with later on, but her motivations came off confusing for much of the book. And Hiram feels like a bit too flawless of a protagonist-sure he has misplaced motivations and makes rash decisions, but his photographic memory seems to propel him through the first half of the book before suddenly never seeming to appear during the second half, while his mastery of Conduction seems to come along without adequate training. His decision-making is messy in the third act of the book, especially because he never fully talks about his motivations with his allies until its too late. I also found the ending really abrupt and would have liked more falling actions.
Despite some complaints towards the characters and plot, I still easily recommend the book. Hiram makes some rushed decisions and Sophia is difficult to understand, but you never dislike any of the main characters. I think Coates' prose is excellent throughout and clearly the plot had a lot of thought invested into it. Its unique take on the Underground Railroad is reason enough to give this a read and I'm looking forward to seeing what Colson Whitehead does with the concept next.
Overall, Dancer is a powerful reconstruction of the end days of slavery (at least in a physical sense), revising beloved historical figures into deities and adding a splash of magical realism. I think my favorite thing about the novel was the various settings, with areas such as the declining tobacco-stained land of Virginia and bustling ports of Philadelphia evoking adequate mysticism for the plot's reimagined Underground Railroad. There's a ton of other amazing details that add to the feel of the world and make this a unique retelling of the Abolitionist movement, like the Quality/Tasked denominations, Ryland's Hounds, Hiram and Maynard's dynamic, and of course Conduction. Conduction is an interesting fantasy element (not as overbearing as other reviewers seemed to think) and I found myself looking forward to Conduction passages/stories whenever they appeared.
However, I had some gripes with the characters. On the positive end, I thought the Underground agents like Corinne, Hawkins, and especially Moses/
Spoiler
HarrietSpoiler
her pregnancyDespite some complaints towards the characters and plot, I still easily recommend the book. Hiram makes some rushed decisions and Sophia is difficult to understand, but you never dislike any of the main characters. I think Coates' prose is excellent throughout and clearly the plot had a lot of thought invested into it. Its unique take on the Underground Railroad is reason enough to give this a read and I'm looking forward to seeing what Colson Whitehead does with the concept next.
mcavoyca's review
Just couldn’t get in to it. I struggled to keep track of what was happening
corkspork's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0