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eleanormaddy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
a true 5 ✨
Everyone should read this book! It’s such a rollercoaster, sadness, anger, joy!
Feels like the same effort has been put into each character and each is so well built.
The passing through time is done effortlessly, each chapter felt planned and clear, what messages she wanted for each one but without losing the magic of the story!
My heart ached with the characters and the family. At the end of each chapter I wanted to know what happened next in that lineage and vice versa.
Gyasi doesn’t shy away from the hard truths and it just hits home how important this history is.
A real 5✨ for me because everything about this story is so good, if nothing else the plot itself is brilliant. The messages and lessons to be learned from this book stuck with me for days. Every chapter made me want to learn about that piece of history, geography and politics. Some of the quotes will stick with me! This book feels so important.
Favourite story was Kojo, he was so well written and I felt like I was part of the family and my heart broke for them.
Favourite quotes;
“Weakness is treating someone as though they belong to you. Strength is knowing that everyone belongs to themselves.”
“This is the problem of history. We cannot know that which we were not there to see and hear and experience for ourselves. We must rely upon the words of others […] We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story.”
Everyone should read this book! It’s such a rollercoaster, sadness, anger, joy!
Feels like the same effort has been put into each character and each is so well built.
The passing through time is done effortlessly, each chapter felt planned and clear, what messages she wanted for each one but without losing the magic of the story!
My heart ached with the characters and the family. At the end of each chapter I wanted to know what happened next in that lineage and vice versa.
Gyasi doesn’t shy away from the hard truths and it just hits home how important this history is.
A real 5✨ for me because everything about this story is so good, if nothing else the plot itself is brilliant. The messages and lessons to be learned from this book stuck with me for days. Every chapter made me want to learn about that piece of history, geography and politics. Some of the quotes will stick with me! This book feels so important.
Favourite story was Kojo, he was so well written and I felt like I was part of the family and my heart broke for them.
Favourite quotes;
“Weakness is treating someone as though they belong to you. Strength is knowing that everyone belongs to themselves.”
“This is the problem of history. We cannot know that which we were not there to see and hear and experience for ourselves. We must rely upon the words of others […] We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story.”
eeeeeeee's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Beautiful book, I see why it got such good reviews, feeling emotional now that it's done, just lovely. Such an interesting structure and satisfying ending.
emmagandersen's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
3.75
I appreciated the insight in what it’s like to be black in the 1700s and 1800s in the triangular trade and what it’s like to grow up as African American. My friend also pointed out that the book gives a great view on how quickly we lose track of and forget our ancestors, even though their actions in a way shape our lives, which I thought was a great take as well. But for me to really enjoy a book, I need to feel more connected to the characters, which I feel like is hard to do when you only have 20 pages with each character. So I enjoyed the book, I just couldn’t really connect with it.
rai's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-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? No
4.25
tishywishy's review against another edition
5.0
This book had been on my radar for so long and I'm happy I got a chance to read it. I don't think any review I do will give it justice but I will say that it was a transcendent journey that touched me deeply. A must read.
ewaradz's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-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
3.75
I really enjoyed the idea of following the generations of the family - first book I ever read of this sort. The one thing that spoiled it for me is the ending, it didn't quite reach where it should have in my opinion.
astridfilt's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
sabrinacappelli's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
melodys_library's review against another edition
5.0
Gyasi created something sorrowful, yet beautiful, with this one.
The novel is broken down into 14 chapters - each chapter told from the perspective of the next generation, from West Africa to the United States. The scope is vast - traversing thousands of years and the Atlantic Ocean, exploring themes of slavery, segregation, racism. The scope is so vast that I wound up having to draw myself a family tree as I read, tracing the lineage of the two half sisters through the generations, and forming the connection at the end.
I have one complaint: I don’t think the stones were really significant in this story, save for the fact that the narrator used them as a tangible reminder for the reader about all the past links. Unfortunately, this was the novel’s downfall. A truly great work wouldn’t be so broken up that an author should have to force connections; but I give her the benefit of the doubt given the “novel in short stories” format.
The novel is broken down into 14 chapters - each chapter told from the perspective of the next generation, from West Africa to the United States. The scope is vast - traversing thousands of years and the Atlantic Ocean, exploring themes of slavery, segregation, racism. The scope is so vast that I wound up having to draw myself a family tree as I read, tracing the lineage of the two half sisters through the generations, and forming the connection at the end.
I have one complaint: I don’t think the stones were really significant in this story, save for the fact that the narrator used them as a tangible reminder for the reader about all the past links. Unfortunately, this was the novel’s downfall. A truly great work wouldn’t be so broken up that an author should have to force connections; but I give her the benefit of the doubt given the “novel in short stories” format.