A review by abbie_
Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga

challenging reflective slow-paced

3.0

I bought and read the third book in Tsitsi Dangarembga’s Nervous Conditions trilogy back in 2021, so it was about time I found myself a copy of the first book! I enjoyed Nervous Conditions slightly more than This Mournable Body, but did struggle with the writing in both a little 😭 I swear, anything published before 2010 has me struggling these days - Nervous Conditions was published in 1988. I saw a review that said it felt like it had been written to be studied at school, and honestly, I can see that. There’s a lot to unpack in it, mainly to do with class and gender (which is a good thing!), but occasionally the characters will just break out into a monologue that feels a bit unnatural. Nevertheless, I did appreciate its commentary on colonialism, education, and sexism! 

I will probably read The Book of Not, seems rude not to having read #1 and #3!
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