Scan barcode
sandysmith's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A great book, the central character Maddie, has Ghanaian heritage. It is a coming of age story, and her development is funny and sad. She's caught between cultures. She is called Maame, meaning woman which she is from an early age. She is selfless caring for her dad, with little to no help, and he has deteriorating Parkinsons. Her mother is absent in Ghana for a great part of childhood and her brother who rarely sees her or his dad. Her mother returns back to the UK, so Maddie leaves home for the first time. Google is her trusted friend. It's about relationships, friendships, family, and deals with all sorts of differing issues, racism, sexuality, grief, and social commentary. It is beautifully written, sad, funny, awkward, painful, poignant, heartwarming, moving cracker of a read. I cant believe its a debut book. Love it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Racism, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual content
bethanwx's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Maddie is a protagonist I deeply loved to and I found her story so moving. Her growth into the version of herself she wants to be is messy and I was so proud of how she handled everyone in her life at the end. George's exploration into how women can be forced to grow up too soon, whilst men can get away with less, is deeply explored.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Misogyny and Racism
Minor: Transphobia
jourdanicus's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
While not a perfect five-star read for me, this book still touched on a lot of my "catnip" topics and I really enjoyed it.
Maddie as a character is naive in a way that toed the line of believability for me sometimes, esp cially for a gen Z/millennial with the lived experience of being Black in a colonial country. However, the way the themes of racism, misogyny, and sexuality were included is perfect for readers who might be newer to those topics and interested in diversifying their reading.
I did find Maddie relatable in a lot of ways too. The characters and the story were sweet without being saccharine. The plot was a little slow to build, but the second half/third was worth it.
For better or worse, the real life experiences of the author really came through in the story, and I think this book is a well-executed answer to the prompt of "write what you know."
Maddie as a character is naive in a way that toed the line of believability for me sometimes, esp cially for a gen Z/millennial with the lived experience of being Black in a colonial country. However, the way the themes of racism, misogyny, and sexuality were included is perfect for readers who might be newer to those topics and interested in diversifying their reading.
I did find Maddie relatable in a lot of ways too. The characters and the story were sweet without being saccharine. The plot was a little slow to build, but the second half/third was worth it.
For better or worse, the real life experiences of the author really came through in the story, and I think this book is a well-executed answer to the prompt of "write what you know."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Death of parent
Moderate: Dementia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
Minor: Medical content, Misogyny, Suicide, Drug use, Racism, Alcohol, Biphobia, and Eating disorder
nanirump's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Medical content, Sexual content, Drug use, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Death of parent
theliteraryloot's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Racism, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Moderate: Sexual content
loesm's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Racism
evawhite's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Sexual content and Racism
Minor: Suicide and Terminal illness
lottiebrooks's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“I’m sure there was a time when I was happy,” I say to the boiling pot of pasta. “But how do you measure that? How do you know if you’re genuinely happy or if you’re just mostly all right with sprinkles of laughter and occasional shit storms of sadness? Maybe I’ve only ever been all right.”
This one got me in my feels ❤️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual content and Racism
abbie_'s review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25
Thanks to Libro.fm for my free ALC of Maame! I loved Maddie and this audiobook had such a perfect narrator (Heather Agyepong - I’m gutted she hasn’t narrated anything else yet?!) that I felt so sad to finish it! Both the narration and style of writing made Maame feel like talking with a close friend. Maddie’s experiences with depression closely mirrored my own at times, which was both a gut wrench and a comfort. We both google the most inane things that a lot of people would just grasp through intuition, so I loved that as well. I loved watching Maddie grow as a woman throughout the book, come into herself and stand up for what she deserves.
I wish we had seen more from the side characters, especially her two best friends as they had potential to be incredible but more felt like they were just there to prop Maddie up at times. But at the end of the day, it is Maddie’s story. This book delves into Ghanaian culture & family dynamics, and I loved that towards the end Maddie started to lean more into learning Twi and exploring her heritage. I’m not a religious person at all, but I even appreciated Maddie’s evolving relationship with God. Oh, and I didn’t even mention her work yet - Maame encompasses so much, but to me it never felt forced.
Overall just a bloody good book tackling depression, grief, complicated family relationships, micro-aggressions experienced by Black women in the publishing industry, sex, faith, and so much more. Maddie is very much muddling through her 20s, and it was comforting to be along for the ride!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Mental illness
Moderate: Racism
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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? Yes
4.25
This book catches each and every bitter, poignant moment. There is a lot of guilt on Maddie's shoulders and familial rooted pain. She is the oldest daughter and also a younger sibling so much of the care work for her father falls on her alone, besides the relief worker they have come by occasionally.
The realistic way her grief flows and changes her was refreshing and emotional for the reader. There is a line referencing that how she is now is her normal after her father's passing and it is something that can't just change without hard, intentional self work.
The distance from the other characters makes them feel way more one dimensional but this may be intentional to reflect the distance Maddie has put or maintained between herself and most of the other people in her life. We, as readers, don't get to know much about any of the other characters because Maddie doesn't really know them. This is revealed within the funeral preparations when she is struggling to type up the eulogy.
For me the hardest hitting aspects were the impulse to support everyone else regardless of how the self is doing, the guilt over family connection, the hurt over feeling stuck having to support everyone else, and the isolation one in that situation learns to be okay with- even though it may not be their preferred state otherwise.
The realistic way her grief flows and changes her was refreshing and emotional for the reader. There is a line referencing that how she is now is her normal after her father's passing and it is something that can't just change without hard, intentional self work.
The distance from the other characters makes them feel way more one dimensional but this may be intentional to reflect the distance Maddie has put or maintained between herself and most of the other people in her life. We, as readers, don't get to know much about any of the other characters because Maddie doesn't really know them. This is revealed within the funeral preparations when she is struggling to type up the eulogy.
For me the hardest hitting aspects were the impulse to support everyone else regardless of how the self is doing, the guilt over family connection, the hurt over feeling stuck having to support everyone else, and the isolation one in that situation learns to be okay with- even though it may not be their preferred state otherwise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Mental illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicide