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fuzzyhebrew's review against another edition
funny
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
My favorite line:
"We cheered everything, while despising the poor Europeans and their presidents who couldn't even stay in power until they died. We were flattered that Comrade President Ngouabi and the people in the government loved us so dearly, and had given us such an important mission, unlike the poor pupils in other countries, whose presidents were not Comrade Marien Ngouabi. "
I don't really know whether people in the Congo liked Ngouabi. A lot of the books I've been reading this year feature horrific events seen from the perspectives of children, and I have enjoyed all of them so far. It's easy to fall in love with the naive voice of a child while understanding some things about the world that the character does not. I was also impacted by the imagery of the white cranes juxtaposed with the violent statement the schoolchildren learn that their mission is to sacrifice their lives for their president and will turn into white cranes after death.
The author is also a very interesting person and worth listening to.
The dog lives.
"We cheered everything, while despising the poor Europeans and their presidents who couldn't even stay in power until they died. We were flattered that Comrade President Ngouabi and the people in the government loved us so dearly, and had given us such an important mission, unlike the poor pupils in other countries, whose presidents were not Comrade Marien Ngouabi. "
I don't really know whether people in the Congo liked Ngouabi. A lot of the books I've been reading this year feature horrific events seen from the perspectives of children, and I have enjoyed all of them so far. It's easy to fall in love with the naive voice of a child while understanding some things about the world that the character does not. I was also impacted by the imagery of the white cranes juxtaposed with the violent statement the schoolchildren learn that their mission is to sacrifice their lives for their president and will turn into white cranes after death.
The author is also a very interesting person and worth listening to.
The dog lives.
zellm's review against another edition
2.0
Maybe I'm just not smart enough or informed enough for this book, because I found it confusing and dull. There's so little action or plot, just a lot of political dialogue that made no sense to me. I did like the overarching theme of loyalty, but the execution didn't work for me.
booksbecreads's review against another edition
3.0
"Comrade President Marine Ngouabi looks sad in this photo. Maybe it's dawned on him that it's not easy being leader of the revolution in a country where people want to pay later"
tinamayreads's review against another edition
4.0
THE DEATH OF COMRADE PRESIDENT by Alain Mabanckou was quite funny! This novel is translated from the French and takes place in Congo 1977 and follows Michel, a teenage boy, and his family dealing with the aftermath of the death of Comrade President Marien Ngouabi. I really enjoyed the writing style that reinforced jokes through repetition. It was really interesting to read about the Congolese culture. There were quite a few parts in this book that really made me laugh out loud!
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Thank you to The New Press via NetGalley for this advance review copy!
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Thank you to The New Press via NetGalley for this advance review copy!
msjoanna's review against another edition
3.0
This book highlights for me how little I know of the Republic of Congo (i.e., Congo-Brazzaville, the former French colony). The author recognizes that his readers will know nothing, and makes an effort to have explanations of the players, politics, and history built into the story. This has the benefit of keeping the reader oriented and providing education, but it tends to break off the action and leads to long sections of exposition.
The story is told from the perspective of a twelve-year-old during the few days surrounding the assassination of the Comrade President Marien Ngouabi in March 1977. (Not to be confused with the assassination of Patrice Lumumba in 1961, who was the president of the Republic of the Congo-Kinshasa, the former Belgian colony.) In the guise of people explaining things to the protagonist, various characters (and one long radio broadcast) explain the political history of the country. At that time, the Republic of Congo (the former French colony) was the People's Republic of Congo , and was a Marxist state that lasted from 1963 until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1992.
When characters get distracted from explaining the history of the country, the reader gets glimpses of the marketplace, the interactions between different family members, and the family structure of the protagonist--living with his mother, who has become the second wife of "Papa Roger." I learned about the food, the family relations, the way that different ethnic groups interact, and other small details that brought the story to life.
Overall, I am glad to have read the book and learned about a piece of the world and a part of history about which I knew nothing.
The story is told from the perspective of a twelve-year-old during the few days surrounding the assassination of the Comrade President Marien Ngouabi in March 1977. (Not to be confused with the assassination of Patrice Lumumba in 1961, who was the president of the Republic of the Congo-Kinshasa, the former Belgian colony.) In the guise of people explaining things to the protagonist, various characters (and one long radio broadcast) explain the political history of the country. At that time, the Republic of Congo (the former French colony) was the People's Republic of Congo , and was a Marxist state that lasted from 1963 until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1992.
When characters get distracted from explaining the history of the country, the reader gets glimpses of the marketplace, the interactions between different family members, and the family structure of the protagonist--living with his mother, who has become the second wife of "Papa Roger." I learned about the food, the family relations, the way that different ethnic groups interact, and other small details that brought the story to life.
Overall, I am glad to have read the book and learned about a piece of the world and a part of history about which I knew nothing.
angelinite's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I really enjoyed this but I'm not sure what to say about it other than you should read it.
jacobjp's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
flo2137's review against another edition
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0