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jennyshank's review
5.0
https://www.dallasnews.com/arts/books/2018/02/06/five-new-novels-wont-want-miss
by Jenny Shank, Special Contributor
Dallas Morning News, February 2, 2018
Aliu's first novel tells the parallel stories of Elsie, a young Lithuanian-American woman working at a diner in Waterbury, Conn., who falls for an Albanian immigrant dishwasher, and Luljeta, the daughter the pair had and Elsie raised alone. Aliu creates a vivid picture of gritty Waterbury, downtrodden since its brass mills shuttered. Elsie says she needs "a car and a ticket out of my mother's house and an epic sort of love you can get tattooed across your forearm without thinking twice about it," while Luljeta, 17 years later, is hoping her good grades will be her ticket into NYU.
It's clear from the outset that neither will get exactly what she wants, but the women's voices are instantly so compelling — first-person in Elsie's sections, second-person in Luljeta's -- you'll want to read on to find out how they ride out the wave of their failures.
These women are nail-tough yet vulnerable underneath, and readers will root for them to conquer their bullies, broken hearts and money troubles.
[I only had space to write this very short review for Dallas, but "Brass" impressed me more and more as it went on. Such an honest, moving evocation of two women.]
by Jenny Shank, Special Contributor
Dallas Morning News, February 2, 2018
Aliu's first novel tells the parallel stories of Elsie, a young Lithuanian-American woman working at a diner in Waterbury, Conn., who falls for an Albanian immigrant dishwasher, and Luljeta, the daughter the pair had and Elsie raised alone. Aliu creates a vivid picture of gritty Waterbury, downtrodden since its brass mills shuttered. Elsie says she needs "a car and a ticket out of my mother's house and an epic sort of love you can get tattooed across your forearm without thinking twice about it," while Luljeta, 17 years later, is hoping her good grades will be her ticket into NYU.
It's clear from the outset that neither will get exactly what she wants, but the women's voices are instantly so compelling — first-person in Elsie's sections, second-person in Luljeta's -- you'll want to read on to find out how they ride out the wave of their failures.
These women are nail-tough yet vulnerable underneath, and readers will root for them to conquer their bullies, broken hearts and money troubles.
[I only had space to write this very short review for Dallas, but "Brass" impressed me more and more as it went on. Such an honest, moving evocation of two women.]
heykellyjensen's review
A damn great read about a mother and daughter, told 17 years apart. It's a character study, but the voices are powerful, the landscape stark, and it'll appeal to readers who loved LADY BIRD for the exploration of mother-daughter relationships.
zzzrevel's review
5.0
I thought this was fantastic. What a heartbreaker
and emotional ride.
A mother and a daughter alternate telling their
stories, the mother in first person, the daughter
in second person.
The mother is self-deprecating but mildly
humorous so it all works out. She has the
more interesting story to tell and it really
really got to me emotionally and I'm not
that type of guy to get that involved in a
story. But I had to know how it ended
even though there is the daughter's voice
too in alternate chapters so you at last know
that turned out ok.
The daughter is also not big on self-esteem
but her story is not as emotional although
it does have somewhat of a surprise ending
that also saddened me.
I wonder if any of this is (auto)biographical
because the author seems to have the same
ethnic background as the daughter. That may
have played into how it affected me, but
in either case this was a terrific read.
and emotional ride.
A mother and a daughter alternate telling their
stories, the mother in first person, the daughter
in second person.
The mother is self-deprecating but mildly
humorous so it all works out. She has the
more interesting story to tell and it really
really got to me emotionally and I'm not
that type of guy to get that involved in a
story. But I had to know how it ended
even though there is the daughter's voice
too in alternate chapters so you at last know
that turned out ok.
The daughter is also not big on self-esteem
but her story is not as emotional although
it does have somewhat of a surprise ending
that also saddened me.
I wonder if any of this is (auto)biographical
because the author seems to have the same
ethnic background as the daughter. That may
have played into how it affected me, but
in either case this was a terrific read.
madisonm934's review
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.5
amylee218's review
5.0
“Suds dripped from her fingertips as if she bled cleanliness, and could just wash over us with it, but she held her arms close to her, cradling herself.”
The writing in this novel is gorgeous-- the author used a lot of figurative language, but it never felt overworked or like she was trying too hard. The words were just right. It was biting and sad, funny, honest, and a bit tragic. The story was written in both the first and the second person, which is unusual, but it worked here. I was a bit more attached to Elsie's story than Luljeta's (maybe because I could relate to her more-- I was a teen mother myself). This book is said to be an exploration of the relationships between mothers and daughters, but I thought that Elsie and Luljeta's stories were a bit separate throughout, and that it focused more on the relationship (or lack of) that both women had with Bashkim. I know that all of the decisions that they made were both defined by and the result of the relationship that they had with each other, but I just wanted more mother/daughter stuff. The ending was a bit abrupt, and even as I turned that last page, I kept thinking there was more to their story. I will definitely seek out more of Aliu's writing.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and it got pushed to the back of my very full bookshelf. I apologize for taking so long to read it, and am so glad I finally did.
The writing in this novel is gorgeous-- the author used a lot of figurative language, but it never felt overworked or like she was trying too hard. The words were just right. It was biting and sad, funny, honest, and a bit tragic. The story was written in both the first and the second person, which is unusual, but it worked here. I was a bit more attached to Elsie's story than Luljeta's (maybe because I could relate to her more-- I was a teen mother myself). This book is said to be an exploration of the relationships between mothers and daughters, but I thought that Elsie and Luljeta's stories were a bit separate throughout, and that it focused more on the relationship (or lack of) that both women had with Bashkim. I know that all of the decisions that they made were both defined by and the result of the relationship that they had with each other, but I just wanted more mother/daughter stuff. The ending was a bit abrupt, and even as I turned that last page, I kept thinking there was more to their story. I will definitely seek out more of Aliu's writing.
I won an ARC of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and it got pushed to the back of my very full bookshelf. I apologize for taking so long to read it, and am so glad I finally did.
davenash's review
4.0
I enjoyed the storytelling and writing. Here are two of my favorite sentences, both on the same page.
"She said that being in the kitchen at the Ross was like working at a funeral home, but I doubt that the funeral home workers saw their failure in the faces of the corpses they stared into every day."
"I understood it. They were embarrassed. They’d been duped. It was easy to recognize on the other people, but it wore disguises when you looked into the mirror."
Aliu alternates narrators between mother and daughter. The mother tells the story of her daughter's conception and birth, the daughter tells the story of the hunt for her father. The mother's story reveals how the father was separated. Since we know from the second chapter that her daughter was born and her father left, the mother's story is less interesting than the daughter's but Aliu's alternation keeps the dream alive.
I've driven through Waterbury CT on 84 many many times, I never stopped and I never knew that it prided itself on being the brass valley. It's like a big deal on their official city website. So there is a rust belt thing going on with the immigrant thing with the fiction of paternity and the mother-daughter relationship. Lots to keep you entertained for almost 300 pages.
"She said that being in the kitchen at the Ross was like working at a funeral home, but I doubt that the funeral home workers saw their failure in the faces of the corpses they stared into every day."
"I understood it. They were embarrassed. They’d been duped. It was easy to recognize on the other people, but it wore disguises when you looked into the mirror."
Aliu alternates narrators between mother and daughter. The mother tells the story of her daughter's conception and birth, the daughter tells the story of the hunt for her father. The mother's story reveals how the father was separated. Since we know from the second chapter that her daughter was born and her father left, the mother's story is less interesting than the daughter's but Aliu's alternation keeps the dream alive.
I've driven through Waterbury CT on 84 many many times, I never stopped and I never knew that it prided itself on being the brass valley. It's like a big deal on their official city website. So there is a rust belt thing going on with the immigrant thing with the fiction of paternity and the mother-daughter relationship. Lots to keep you entertained for almost 300 pages.
yankeebk's review
3.0
3 3/4 🌟
I really enjoyed this book. It was realistic and honest in how people can get caught up and detailed with poor decisions and the complicated relationship between mother and daughter.
I really enjoyed this book. It was realistic and honest in how people can get caught up and detailed with poor decisions and the complicated relationship between mother and daughter.
cchartier's review
3.0
Lovely, but upsetting at times in how close it hues that the truth about mothers and daughters, lovers, and children and absent parents.