Reviews

Call and Response by Gothataone Moeng

bookofcinz's review against another edition

2.0

Bustling with life, energy, we meet fresh characters from contemporary Botswana teaching us about love, loss, family, rejection and redemption.

Gothataone Moeng’s Call and Response is a debut collection of nine short stories that explores life in contemporary Botswana. We meet very ordinary Botswanans who are navigating loss, love, family life, society’s expectation and what it means to be a part of a community.
Moeng writing is inviting, vivid and very engaging. There is a bit of mystery that she starts with for each story that you can’t help but want to solve and be a part of. Majority of the protagonist are women reinventing themselves or trying to not break under tradition and society’s expectation.

Of the nine stories there are a few that stood out to me, A GOOD GIRL who tries to be the good girl for her family, hides all the things she thinks is bad while her brother is doing the opposite. In Botalaote we meet a very young widow who is breaking under the pressure of observing tradition to make sure her husband death is honoured. SMALL WONDERS we find out the meaning of community and desires.

Honestly, this is what I would call a very solid collection of short stories. The author flexes her writing muscles but not too much, she tries, but not too hard and we are transported to Gaborone in Botswana where we meet a colorful, unforgettable cast. I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

siria's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.25

A debut collection of short stories set in contemporary Botswana. Gothataone Moeng has often vivid turns of phrase and a real knack for letting a character's words and actions show us who they are. I could "see" many of the people she talks about here—often young women feeling themselves pulled in various directions—with great clarity. There are some beautiful poignant moments here. But I found Call and Response to be more a series of vignettes/character studies than stories proper, with the individual pieces seeming to come to an end rather than truly finishing. And I think I could roll a little more easily with a story that faded out like that if I felt it had been written with a point in mind rather than a theme. That quibble aside, there's a great deal of promise here and I'll keep an eye out of Moeng's forthcoming novel. 

moyecome's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

bukolayemi's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-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? No

3.25

Short story collection mainly from the point of views of women in Botswana 🇧🇼.

Very engaging stories covering themes like sexuality, grief, societal expectations and culture. 

morybaby's review against another edition

The first story rubbed me the wrong way. I was halfway through the second one and I’m like nAh 
I really wanted to join the Bookclub discussion for this one but I’ll have to pass

bessadams's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

thatothernigeriangirl's review against another edition

funny informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I really enjoyed this one! Admittedly, many of the stories didn’t have conclusive endings that I’d have liked, but the caliber of Moeng’s writing made up for that.

Phew! Can she write?! I had to keep reminding that myself that this was a debut collection. I loved all the women in these stories — in all their wrongs and rights. I also learnt a lot about Botswana; its many droughts, especially the one just after its independence; its cultures of marriage, burying the dead, farming and cattle rearing; also its tribalism.

I also loved the only story with a male MC — Early Life and Education. It’s the longest and touches on many themes, most notably how misogyny is learnt, even when a person is supposed to buoyed by years of living around (and loving) his womenfolk. 

jmwaterhouse's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

overthinkereading's review against another edition

3.0

I didn’t know much about Botswana before reading this collection of short stories, but each story shared another layer of the experience of growing up and living in the country. The writing is gorgeous and descriptive, and the audiobook narration complemented the book very well.

qqjj's review against another edition

hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

 (3, 3.5, 4, 3.5, 4,5,3,4,4)