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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
How far would you go to make amends to a friend for whose death you feel responsible? Would you kill? Would you make space for your friend's spirit in your own body and mind? That is what this book is about, via the story of a WWI soldier from Senegal fighting for the French. This setting and character alone are interesting, because how often do we talk about the Senegalese fighters of WWI? Anyway this was worth the one whole dollar I paid for it (because for some reason this 2021 Booker Prize-winning book was for sale at the Dollar Tree.)
challenging
dark
dark
emotional
sad
tense
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“Temporary madness, in war, is bravery’s sister.”
This is the violent, brutal, inner monologue of a Senegalese man, and soldier and he wades through his grief, guilt and shame, and the effects of racism on his time in the army. It is relentless and upsetting, gory and ugly. The man has been manipulated into losing himself, and parts of his humanity for the glory of the French army and the author portrays this in an uncompromising — but surprisingly poetic way. War, death and the deep well of the human condition on full display. You almost feel as though you’re intruding and should look away… but it’s crucial that you don’t.
Over and over again we are confronted with the line between bravery and madness and the ways this becomes even more blurry because he is a black man. His “savagery” is what he is valued for but it also keeps him separate from the other soldiers and feared within his own company.
I’ve seen criticism of the repetitive phrases, and honestly it CAN be distracting but I think it was a very intentional choice, by the author, to help illustrate the pleading nature of his thoughts. I can’t recommend this broadly because of the things I’ve mentioned above and also because of some imagery and metaphor that is extremely sexual in nature and by extension uncomfortable. But again, this seems intentional. I am quite glad that I finally read this and found it to be a breathtaking and unforgettable journey. Read with caution.