A review by emilyrowanstudio
The Bread the Devil Knead by Lisa Allen-Agostini
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This is a very unique book. A visceral, hard-hitting book about how abuse in child - to put it lightly - leads to an adulthood of domestic abuse and submittance to men's power over women. Our protagonist, Alethea, is not weak though. She is strong, independent, and the picture of resilience. How do you live a life without abuse if it's all you've ever known? Alethea is powerful in her own right, and the way she is Allen-Agostini will possibly always stay with me.
I hadn't heard of The Bread the Devil Knead until it was recommended in an email from bookshop.org. I was drawn in by the title - what a title!! - followed by reviews on Goodreads saying what an immersively emotional read this was. It came as no surprise to me to find out this was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction. The character and world building is phenomenal.
Told mostly in first person Trinidadian creole, interspersed with flashback chapters written in the third person, Alethea's voice is brought to life and I don't think i'll ever read another voice like hers. She never breaks, despite everything that's happened (happens) to her, and only does she come close as the story develops and horrors from her past become clearer and clearer. Take heed of the trigger warnings - incest, rape, and murder to name but a few. This is not an easy read but, if you can stomach it, you will be rewarded as this is ultimately a story about hope, and what comes next.
I hadn't heard of The Bread the Devil Knead until it was recommended in an email from bookshop.org. I was drawn in by the title - what a title!! - followed by reviews on Goodreads saying what an immersively emotional read this was. It came as no surprise to me to find out this was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction. The character and world building is phenomenal.
Told mostly in first person Trinidadian creole, interspersed with flashback chapters written in the third person, Alethea's voice is brought to life and I don't think i'll ever read another voice like hers. She never breaks, despite everything that's happened (happens) to her, and only does she come close as the story develops and horrors from her past become clearer and clearer. Take heed of the trigger warnings - incest, rape, and murder to name but a few. This is not an easy read but, if you can stomach it, you will be rewarded as this is ultimately a story about hope, and what comes next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Incest, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Murder, Rape, and Sexual assault