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wilsonla92's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
africanbookaddict's review against another edition
4.0
!!! https://africanbookaddict.com/2018/08/16/mini-reviews-audiobooks/
What more can be said about Born A Crime? Everybody and their grandmother has read this book.
I started the book in November but got side tracked. If I had listened (I ‘read’ this via audiobook) to this in 3 sittings, I might have given the book 5 stars because it was really enjoyable when I first started. But after 2 months, I was losing interest and felt tired everytime I tried to finish.
Anyway! Trevor Noah is a very compelling storyteller- listening to him speak the various South African languages and imitate various characters was such a treat. But what a stubborn child this boy was! To me, these stories are somewhat an ode to his phenomenal mother, who I truly, truly admired. The ending was so emotional... This book had the right blend of South African racial history, humor and life lessons.
What more can be said about Born A Crime? Everybody and their grandmother has read this book.
I started the book in November but got side tracked. If I had listened (I ‘read’ this via audiobook) to this in 3 sittings, I might have given the book 5 stars because it was really enjoyable when I first started. But after 2 months, I was losing interest and felt tired everytime I tried to finish.
Anyway! Trevor Noah is a very compelling storyteller- listening to him speak the various South African languages and imitate various characters was such a treat. But what a stubborn child this boy was! To me, these stories are somewhat an ode to his phenomenal mother, who I truly, truly admired. The ending was so emotional... This book had the right blend of South African racial history, humor and life lessons.
amelody's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Xenophobia, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Confinement, Colonisation, Toxic relationship, Violence, Racial slurs, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Mental illness, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Classism, Antisemitism, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Sexual content, Sexism, Racism, and Medical content
shornified's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.0
pgreen0309's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
isolte's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
4.5
Absolutely loved this book, Trevor Noah is so funny and charming, wrote my first senior essay on this book, loved it so much!
goldenart95's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
moeinio's review against another edition
5.0
It's incredible to think that you can be born on two different continents and yet have experienced something so similar.
Much of what he talks about in this book, from racism and societal pressures to struggling with family dynamics, being the outsider and having to adapt to hardships, is very relatable and close to home.
One funny thing that struck me was when he talked about how his brain started to store things that happened around him in English, even when people, including himself, were speaking another language at the time. I always thought that was a strange thing to do just to make it easier for me to remember and recall certain events. I am glad to know that I am not the only one.
Much of what he talks about in this book, from racism and societal pressures to struggling with family dynamics, being the outsider and having to adapt to hardships, is very relatable and close to home.
One funny thing that struck me was when he talked about how his brain started to store things that happened around him in English, even when people, including himself, were speaking another language at the time. I always thought that was a strange thing to do just to make it easier for me to remember and recall certain events. I am glad to know that I am not the only one.
lindong524's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
It is a heartbreaking book disguised as comedy.
Noah gives us historical backgrounds, certainly, but he doesn't attempt to give a grand history of South Africa. But he told his history and, in turn, gave us glimpses into a country that I honestly know very little about. I don't think any readers are likely to forget how segregating apartheid was with the image of little Trevor chasing his fleeing white father down in a public park, screaming "daddy!" His father running away because, obviously, mingling and, especially, having children with another race was strictly forbidden. I know that, because of Trevor's matric dance date that, I will at least remember that black people in South Africa did not belong under a single ethnic group simply because of the color of their skin. They had each their own rich cultures and, most importantly, language, a construct which Trevor cleverly notes as a unifier but also divider.
The "Hitler" story, possibly the funniest laugh-out-loud tale of this biography, is a reminder how everyone sees the world from a very biased lens. Most of the times, we never realize because our world also shares the same lens. We should not criticize or leap to judgement, but first ask questions. So often in conversation, two people, even of similar background, can be operating on very different premises, definitions, and underlying assumptions.
Trevor Noah does a wonderful job putting a funny twist on his sometimes tragic upbringing. His writing really pulls you in and this was wonderful on audiobook because he knows how to use his voice to keep his audience's attention. The haunting scene when Abel first attacks his mother physically, to hear Trevor's voice say Patricia's name again and again, as Abel, my heart just sank deeper and deeper. I held my breath, waiting for the act to finally occur.
I enjoyed every moment of hearing him tell his story and learning much more about another country.
Noah gives us historical backgrounds, certainly, but he doesn't attempt to give a grand history of South Africa. But he told his history and, in turn, gave us glimpses into a country that I honestly know very little about. I don't think any readers are likely to forget how segregating apartheid was with the image of little Trevor chasing his fleeing white father down in a public park, screaming "daddy!" His father running away because, obviously, mingling and, especially, having children with another race was strictly forbidden. I know that, because of Trevor's matric dance date that, I will at least remember that black people in South Africa did not belong under a single ethnic group simply because of the color of their skin. They had each their own rich cultures and, most importantly, language, a construct which Trevor cleverly notes as a unifier but also divider.
The "Hitler" story, possibly the funniest laugh-out-loud tale of this biography, is a reminder how everyone sees the world from a very biased lens. Most of the times, we never realize because our world also shares the same lens. We should not criticize or leap to judgement, but first ask questions. So often in conversation, two people, even of similar background, can be operating on very different premises, definitions, and underlying assumptions.
Trevor Noah does a wonderful job putting a funny twist on his sometimes tragic upbringing. His writing really pulls you in and this was wonderful on audiobook because he knows how to use his voice to keep his audience's attention. The haunting scene when Abel first attacks his mother physically, to hear Trevor's voice say Patricia's name again and again, as Abel, my heart just sank deeper and deeper. I held my breath, waiting for the act to finally occur.
I enjoyed every moment of hearing him tell his story and learning much more about another country.