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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
i knew this would be a 5 star book long before reading the final page. what an extraordinary novel. stunningly heartbreaking prose, full of rage and sadness and beauty that tells the story of a frenchman and his journey to senegal. a tender story about desire and what it means to love.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Idk I’ll try again but just didn’t take hold in the slightest
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book did exactly what it needed to, but in that made me hate the main character so much that it was hard to enjoy (which again was totally the point) so I’m more than a bit conflicted
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was challenging. The content is heavy - raw and violent colonialism. The whole story within a story setup was also so long and boring (50-ish pages) that I almost put this down and walked away. As soon as Aglae discovered Adanson’s journals, it picked up speed and immediately transformed into a page-turner.
I guess I didn’t expect the protagonist to be so loathsome. This White man really tried to possess this woman he says he fell in love with, betrayed himself and the woman he claimed to love by praising the slave trade for his own merit, and literally burned down Africa during a sudden selfish wave of grief. Sheesh. I was so angry, I actually muttered, “What the fuck,” to myself several times in the last 40 pages.
I guess I didn’t expect the protagonist to be so loathsome. This White man really tried to possess this woman he says he fell in love with, betrayed himself and the woman he claimed to love by praising the slave trade for his own merit, and literally burned down Africa during a sudden selfish wave of grief. Sheesh. I was so angry, I actually muttered, “What the fuck,” to myself several times in the last 40 pages.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Slavery, Violence, Trafficking
Minor: Rape
Read this for a Literary Fiction Book Club.
Michel Adanson is dying in Paris, and his last word is Maram. His daughter then makes it her mission to find out what this means. She follows clues that her father told her in the months before his death, which leads her to find his journal. The journal tells of her father's years in Senegal, and a woman that he met and fell in love with, Maram.
He recounts the story of Maram, how she was sold into slavery, but was able to escape.
It is a love story, but also a story of how Europeans and white men, along with African kings, sold their people into slavery.
Well written, but I didn't like the story.
Michel Adanson is dying in Paris, and his last word is Maram. His daughter then makes it her mission to find out what this means. She follows clues that her father told her in the months before his death, which leads her to find his journal. The journal tells of her father's years in Senegal, and a woman that he met and fell in love with, Maram.
He recounts the story of Maram, how she was sold into slavery, but was able to escape.
It is a love story, but also a story of how Europeans and white men, along with African kings, sold their people into slavery.
Well written, but I didn't like the story.