Reviews

The Blunder by Mutt-Lon

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100booksyearly's review against another edition

slow-paced

3.0

⭐⭐⭐

This was an interesting quick read that I enjoyed a lot. It's a short historical fiction novel based on true events that happened in the 1920's in Africa with a fictional twist. I had a few issues with the pacing at times, especially when the plot went into an information dump and really brought the story to a stand still. The worst was with Edoa. This is a translation of a french(?) novel, so perhaps the issue could have been because of that.

melbsreads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging medium-paced

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

3.0

Trigger warnings: racism, violence, xenophobia, death, colonialism, medical malpractice, death of a child (in the past)

Well, that's Cameroon crossed off my Read Around the World list in a short little package. I kind of wish that the translator's note at the end about the actual events that inspired the story had been at the beginning because I kind of struggled to get my head around what was happening at times. I tried Googling it, but just ran into the hero worship of Jamot that the author describes.

Anyway. It's an interesting insight into colonialism and Cameroon in the 1920s, caught between two colonial powers. But I don't know that I'll be in a hurry to seek out this author again.