Reviews with content warning for Racism - An American Marriage

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

93 reviews

thissagreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

1.75

Even though this book got awards and nods in the writing world, I was confused as to why exactly. The pace was SLOW and I didn't like any other the main characters. Loved the narration and I admire the different style in which the book was written, but that was it. The storyline was a bit predictable and boring and there was too much vagueness even when the characters were speaking from their POV. The best part was the last 2 chapters because the pace finally picked up.

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lautodd_'s review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely loved and loathed this book all at once. It frustrated me how much I couldn’t have an ending or characters I’d wanted or dreamed of wanting in the course of my reading— and that made it all the more brilliant and adventurous, in the most heartbreaking and embarrassing of ways. I find it clever when authors force their readers to relinquish control, when readers cannot satisfyingly imagine beyond what is in front of them, or replace and weave narratives or conclusions, away from the narrative presented, of their own personal ideas and fantasies. When I am met with the reality of relinquishing my own delusions of a story, submitting to the reality in front of me— so much like the actual lives we each live— I am most impressed and defeated all at once.

From the three-pronged and rotating perspective of 3 different but fatefully connected and indelibly imperfect and spiteful characters, Tayari causes to life a story about people, race, justice, love, and family— and the complexities each function weaves into and throughout a Westernized plane of relating— so masterfully it leaves you sober and wanting.

One of the most favorite and most marking stories I’ve known to-date.

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ashareads's review

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adventurous reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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marena02's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? Yes

3.5

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swordsmith's review

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emotional hopeful 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

4.0

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dudette's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

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

2.0

Intriguing and interesting outline. Good start but the story couldn't keep up. A serious racist issue got lost into a love triangle. It was hard to connect with any of the characters:

• The author tried so hard to describe Celestial as this independent woman that "doesn't belong to anyone" but she has never acted like one. Not once.

• Andre was plain boring.

• I liked Roy better than the others. He was more raw, however, the author lost me because of all the unnecessary sexual descriptions. All I will remember about him is that he wanted to have sex without a condom...twice, just "to have nothing between them".

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crazytourists_books's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

This is a perfect example of an over-hyped book that didn't deserve have of the enthusiasm around it. The idea was interesting; if the author had focused on that and not the "romantic" side, it would have been great. A black man, wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for rape, spends five years in prison. Do we read about that? A few pages. Five years covered in a few pages. But HIS dream of having kids? Of having HIS wife? GIS home? Of controlling everything because HE is the man? Of how everyone owes HIM because they haven't been through what HE has been through? Of having sex without protection because HE doesn't want a piece of rubber between him and HIS "cure"? Of unbelievable sexism (by every single character in this book)? Pages upon pages upon pages.
I liked the narration trick, the three different points of view, but nothing was deep. It could and should have been over after a hundred pages, there was just nothing there. Flat characters, no story. And I am so disappointed and frustrated because the story could have been so much more.
Ii makes me wonder... did Obama really read this and thought that this book portrayes the effects of a wrongful conviction on a young African-American couple? Seriously?
I have no idea why I read all of it, when I knew from the first few pages that it would frustrate, disappoint, and bore me.

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jayisreading's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

An American Marriage was a novel with many moving parts to craft wonderfully complex—but also frustrating—Black American characters to explore key components of a relationship (romantic or otherwise): love, duty, trust, communication, and more. It’s an exploration of the successes and, in many cases, failures to uphold these values. Primarily through Roy, Celestial, and Andre, Jones asks to what degree do we have power and commitment to maintain our relationships. The answer, as it turns out, is a really messy one for the three main characters.

While Jones focuses primarily on relationships, she also acknowledges that there are layers to what can impact these ties. The main one is that system racism is ever-present, even if it isn’t explicitly acknowledged. This is accomplished in this book with much of the plot centering the effects of the wrongful incarceration of Roy. Another one that I found particularly interesting was class privilege, especially within the Black community, and the night-and-day difference money can make in their lives. I should mention that this book deeply and unapologetically centers Blackness and Black American voices, which I really appreciated.

That being said, I have to admit that I didn’t feel I was the intended audience. It’s possible that me being non-Black played a role. However, I think it’s because this book centers romantic relationships that this book didn’t really click with me. I don’t care very much about romance in books; it’s fine if it appears, but I lose interest if it’s the main point. Despite this, I still felt that there’s a lot to appreciate about this book, and I fully recognize what was done well.

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natashaleighton_'s review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

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bookishinqueens's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

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