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serendipitysbooks's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
In Philadelphia in 1910, Edward is said to have deliberately driven a streetcar into a store window. A mob sets upon in and as he lays dying in the rundown coloured section of a hospital his mother Spring is at his bedside, desperate to relate to him his family history and the story of how he came to be. As she does so, her sister Tempe, or more accurately her ghost, is at her side. This is a challenging story to read with a large cast of characters, a strong thread of magical realism, and shifts in time that aren't always clearly indicated. It felt very much in the vein of Toni Morrison, although not so accomplished. While it relayed an interesting family saga, one replete with the horrors of slavery and the resistance of strong Black women, I'm not convinced that it added anything new to the conversation. It was first published in 2019 and may have impacted me more had I read it then. I would have loved more of Edward's story, to learn exactly what he was doing on the streetcar that day, and if and how it was tied to the racial and class unrest in Philadelphia that year. Instead, this was just a framing device allowing Spring to tell her story. I don't regret reading it, but I think the structure got in the way of the plot and the characters lessening the overall impact, at least for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Racism, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Violence
shewhoturnsallpages7834's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Infertility, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
nialiversuch's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Infertility, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Murder