Reviews

The Theory of Flight by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu

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rouge_red's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.25

My ears perk up whenever I see a magical realism novel, and this book features fantastical things at the beginning. But my fear was that the magical realism would make the tone too whimsical or take the seriousness out of certain narratives. Thankfully, the author toned that down so that we wouldn't be treated events in the book with too much levity. Overall, a sometimes emotional, other times loving and caring, with a lot of quite moving scenes that, though you may not cry, you are touched by how fully emotions and feelings come off the page. I always love a book that shows communication (or lack thereof) between different people/relationships, and I found Ndlovu demonstrated, in particular, the bitterness that comes with severing of relationships. As well as a certain wistfulness of what could have been to genuine love. A very pleasant reading experience. A book I'm considering buying.

oliviatheron's review

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adventurous sad medium-paced

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

4.0

totallytilla's review

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4.0

Beautifully written, magical stories and characters - weaving a web of intertwined histories over time - dealing with love, loss, tragedy and resilience.

wrennova123's review

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

One of the best books I’ve read by far. Piqued my interest in magical realism as a genre.

Content Warnings

tsungi's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful slow-paced

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

5.0

luckies_universe's review against another edition

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4.0

What an emotional whirlwind. The author slowly but surely builds a historical picture that takes readers on a journey through generations.

The story switches perspectives between multiple characters, but the main character, Genie, is radiant and alluring, just as the author describes her. She was magnetic.

I liked the small glimpse into Zimbabwean history that I got. I was confused, at first, because I have no frame of reference for the conflicts in Zimbabwe during the eighties, so I did a quick search and got myself up to speed, and things quickly started making sense. I appreciate a book that pushes me to research a culture or point in time that I might not have known about before.

If I have to point out downsides, I would say that sometimes the timeline is a bit jumpy, going back and forth, and I had a bit of a struggle figuring out what decade I was in and which character I was with. There is, however, a helpful character guide at the front of the book.

To top it all off, this book has other book recommendations at the back. Like, hello? Can we normalise having book recs at the end of every book, please?