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A review by debbie_reads
This Place Is Still Beautiful by XiXi Tian
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I really enjoyed this book. The main plot line focuses on racism, with one particular act of racism against a Chinese American family being the focal point but also broadening the conversation/plot into a wider discussion of many facets of racism.
The story is told via alternating view points of two sisters, Annalie and Margaret. I really enjoyed the portrayal of the relationship between the sisters, who feel they are very different from each other. I thought the author did an excellent job in showing that while we may love our siblings we sometimes don't like or understand them. I also enjoyed how the relationship between the pair changed and matured over the course of the book. While the story contains quite a large amount of romantic entanglements I really thought that where it shone was when showing the familial relationships. not just between the sisters but between them and their mother, their non-relationship with their absent father and the sub plot between Daniel and his grandfather and father.
The only reason I've dropped a half star from the 5 star rating is because I found the book a little tricky to get in to in the beginning chapter, the initial few pages felt a little clunky in regards to sentence structure but that passed very quickly and also the passing of time felt a little odd, difficult to realise just how much time had passed between each event. Otherwise I thought this book was fabulous - I'll definitely be recommending it and purchasing a copy for my local anti-racism library.
The story is told via alternating view points of two sisters, Annalie and Margaret. I really enjoyed the portrayal of the relationship between the sisters, who feel they are very different from each other. I thought the author did an excellent job in showing that while we may love our siblings we sometimes don't like or understand them. I also enjoyed how the relationship between the pair changed and matured over the course of the book. While the story contains quite a large amount of romantic entanglements I really thought that where it shone was when showing the familial relationships. not just between the sisters but between them and their mother, their non-relationship with their absent father and the sub plot between Daniel and his grandfather and father.
The only reason I've dropped a half star from the 5 star rating is because I found the book a little tricky to get in to in the beginning chapter, the initial few pages felt a little clunky in regards to sentence structure but that passed very quickly and also the passing of time felt a little odd, difficult to realise just how much time had passed between each event. Otherwise I thought this book was fabulous - I'll definitely be recommending it and purchasing a copy for my local anti-racism library.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime and Racism