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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
This was a fantastic, moving book on the struggles of Apartheit in South Africa for people from all races and cultues, not just black and white people.
It was okay... I thought the idea was wonderful but it just wasn’t pulled off as well as it should have been and the characters didn’t grasp me as much as they could. This book is written with quite ‘flowery’/‘poetic’ language and it just didn’t work for me. There were also multiple incidents of foreshadowing, which became tiresome after the third as they were unnecessary. It’s a shame.
EDIT: it is now 3 months later and I saw this on my bookshelf. I couldn’t even remember whether I had read it, never mind what happened. This book is now on its way to the charity shop for a home that hopefully will like it more than I did. Downgraded from 3 to 2 stars as it was so forgettable.
EDIT: it is now 3 months later and I saw this on my bookshelf. I couldn’t even remember whether I had read it, never mind what happened. This book is now on its way to the charity shop for a home that hopefully will like it more than I did. Downgraded from 3 to 2 stars as it was so forgettable.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism
Short but, nonetheless, a great book. Not by any means the best book I've ever read yet a fantastic read. Good to curl up with on a rainy day & just read in one sitting - which I did. Amazing.
This novel was shortlisted for the Carnegie and well worth it. It is set in South Africa around the time of the Soweto Riots. The main character is Ruby, a white teen girl. Ruby goes to the English high school (as opposed to the Afrikaans high school). Her father is a lawyer who defends not only the rich, but also poor black activists. Her mother owns an art gallery where she often highlights up and coming black artists. This puts her family under a vigilant eye by the powerful, and Ruby lives a very private life, not admitting her own or her parents' views openly.
When she rebuffs the advances of a boy in her school and falls for a Afrikaans boy, she alienates her school friends and begins to be harassed. When the riots begin, her family is caught in the middle.
There is a lot going on here, and Ruby must mature faster than most teens as she deals with it. There is lots of interesting history here, and a section at the end gives more information on South African history. Glass was born in South Africa, emigrating to the U.S. as a young adult.
When she rebuffs the advances of a boy in her school and falls for a Afrikaans boy, she alienates her school friends and begins to be harassed. When the riots begin, her family is caught in the middle.
There is a lot going on here, and Ruby must mature faster than most teens as she deals with it. There is lots of interesting history here, and a section at the end gives more information on South African history. Glass was born in South Africa, emigrating to the U.S. as a young adult.
This is one of the best books I've read in a while and I'd highly recommend it. Its a young adult fictional novel that deals with an historical event, that we don't usually see in YA (but it doesn't feel like you're reading a historical book, which is, in my opinion, the way it should be.) The synopsis is a little misleading, because the romance was not, in my mind, the main plot in the novel. There was much more to this book.
This book seems to be relatively unknown, not one of my 200+ goodread friends had read or even added it to their to-read shelf! I definitely think this should change.
This novel is set in 70's South Africa during "Apartheid" (I have little to no knowledge of this era, but it was in very simple terms, the segregation of whites and blacks. There was also extreme tension between two white races; the English and the Afrikaner peoples)
Ruby Winters our protagonist belong's to the White English and attends a private school. One of the most popular boys at school is chasing her, she's intelligent, she's popular among her peers and she's a school prefect. At school she appears to be the example of a perfect young adult, but there's much more to Ruby and her family. Her mother and father are both defenders of Black rights.
Her family don't have black servants like everyone else. They have black guests whom they keep secret. Her father is a lawyer, who often represents black people and her mother owns an art gallery that showcases talent from oppressed black individuals. This could get her parents arrested, and so Ruby can never invite her friends home.
When her school's rugby team is playing an Afrikaans school, she befriends a student from the school called Loretta while they both wait for their parents to pick them up. When she tells her parents about her new friendship they are both against it, and Ruby believes them to be hypocrites. They preach about ending segregation, but at the end of the day, they don't approve of befriending an Afrikaner.
Ruby then falls in love with Loretta's brother, Johann, an Afrikaans boy who disagree's with his father who is extremely racist and a supporter of Hitler and his views on oppressing the black people, but nevertheless it is extremely dangerous for her and her family.
Love was a strong theme in this novel, but not just romance. The love between a parent and a child. The love between friends. The love for a cause.
One thing that makes you think, is the dynamic between Ruby's mother and her child. What should come first, a child or a worthy cause? At the start of the story I thought she was a good mother, although she endangered her child through supporting the black artists, but perhaps this was a good lesson to teach? However as the story moved on I really felt that she put Ruby's life in too much danger for her art. (A fact that her husband pointed out.) Ultimately, *SPOILER*
Although there are lots of elements in this novel I hope many of us won't be able to relate to us on a personal level, there are many things happening in the novel, including losing friends, feeling alone, falling in love with someone your parents disapprove of, which I imagine a lot of teenagers will relate to.
In this novel we witness many powerful moments, some entirely fictional and others Ruby's view on actual events that occurred in our history. I found this novel deeply moving and powerful. It was well written, although we could have explored some characters more, I felt overall it wasn't needed, as the main plot was enough to keep me interested and attached emotionally to the story.
I haven't gone in to detail on the book because I want you all to go read it, and enjoy the roller coaster! I will say I was surprised at the ending, and I found the last few paragraphs very touching. The finale sentence was beautiful and may have evoked a tear!
5/5 stars for a novel I believe everyone should read.
Too sick to even think about a review :'), so a review is coming up!