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A review by literarypenguin
Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon
dark
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
Sorrowland is my first Rivers Solomon book and my first dive into the world that the author creates. I was surprised how much I enjoyed what they wrote and how realistic certain situations were.
This book follows a young woman named Vern, a girl born with albinism and astigmatism as she escapes the confines of a cult she was raised in along with her newborn twins Howling and Feral. She hopes to leave that world behind her as she strives to raise her babies in a better and less restricting world. Vern must also learn how to live in this unfamiliar world as she deals with an unexpected change inside of her.
One of the things I loved is how realistic the issues were handled but it was also handled with care and nuance. I loved how the author touched upon racism within the African American community with Vern being albino she never felt like she could connect with the other darker skinned people in her community. It also dealt with homophobia and pedophilia, with Vern being forced into a relationship with a man twice her age while also feeling an attraction toward women but having to hide it to avoid persecution. Cainland was a very believable place to me and their beliefs were written in such a way that made it that much more believable. It made me think that a place like this could exist in reality.
Watching Vern's journey to travel a world she was groomed to fear along with learning how to be a mother to her two children was the part of the book I enjoyed a lot. The second half I will admit did lose me a bit especially the ending. I felt like the ending was trying to hard to create a happy ending when it would have done just as well with a unhappy ending. Even a more neutral ending could have worked in it's favor. I would have loved the book to focus more on Cainland and Vern having to finally come to terms with the trauma that it gave her throughout her whole life. Also the sex scenes were a bit too much with one in particular being very disturbing to me in my opinion.
Besides a few little issues I did enjoy this book and are eager to read more books by Rivers Solomon! I went to see how well their other books fare in comparison to this one!
This book follows a young woman named Vern, a girl born with albinism and astigmatism as she escapes the confines of a cult she was raised in along with her newborn twins Howling and Feral. She hopes to leave that world behind her as she strives to raise her babies in a better and less restricting world. Vern must also learn how to live in this unfamiliar world as she deals with an unexpected change inside of her.
One of the things I loved is how realistic the issues were handled but it was also handled with care and nuance. I loved how the author touched upon racism within the African American community with Vern being albino she never felt like she could connect with the other darker skinned people in her community. It also dealt with homophobia and pedophilia, with Vern being forced into a relationship with a man twice her age while also feeling an attraction toward women but having to hide it to avoid persecution. Cainland was a very believable place to me and their beliefs were written in such a way that made it that much more believable. It made me think that a place like this could exist in reality.
Watching Vern's journey to travel a world she was groomed to fear along with learning how to be a mother to her two children was the part of the book I enjoyed a lot. The second half I will admit did lose me a bit especially the ending. I felt like the ending was trying to hard to create a happy ending when it would have done just as well with a unhappy ending. Even a more neutral ending could have worked in it's favor. I would have loved the book to focus more on Cainland and Vern having to finally come to terms with the trauma that it gave her throughout her whole life. Also the sex scenes were a bit too much with one in particular being very disturbing to me in my opinion.
Besides a few little issues I did enjoy this book and are eager to read more books by Rivers Solomon! I went to see how well their other books fare in comparison to this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Racism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Homophobia
Minor: Alcoholism