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authenticakj's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
meowmediareads's review
3.0
The wording was so complex. Rich but a little too convoluted for me until the ending, which wove together everything. It took me too long to memorize he characters in all of their colors. It's almost a lyrical companion to The Human Stain. Ultimately a complex family history capturing a strata of society never addressed in American history or period fiction. I'd recommend it to specific friends but never read it again.
damalireads's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Really compelling narrative on class and colorism in the Black community. Excellent writing. Ending was just too abrupt and dramatic for me to give it 5 stars but I do recommend it.
remigves's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
zenithharpink's review against another edition
4.0
Beautifully written. Disturbing. Heartbreaking. Fascinating. I couldn't help skipping to the end after Lute made his introduction, he was such a despicable character. It's like watching a car wreck in slow motion. The hate, self-loathing and racism was difficult to turn away from.
Straight-forward, elegant prose. There are many perspectives on race, family and how to be happy. This book was hard to relate to for me, which at times made the story even more grotesque.
I recommend to fans of Black American literature, well-written English stories, and something on the sad side.
Straight-forward, elegant prose. There are many perspectives on race, family and how to be happy. This book was hard to relate to for me, which at times made the story even more grotesque.
I recommend to fans of Black American literature, well-written English stories, and something on the sad side.
oliviagold's review against another edition
5.0
This classic was beautiful. I loved the language and imagery. It was also a perspective I had never read or encountered before and it had me captivated.
bookgirlmagic's review
4.0
Funny story. I once joined a book club about 8 or 9 years ago in the hopes of bettering myself. But in all honesty, back then, reading hadn't become my thing yet. The first book club pick was The Wedding by Dorothy West. I had read about 30 pages of it, but like I said, reading just wasn't my thing.
Rewind 8 or 9 years later and I had just completed the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy by Kevin Kwan and I was hungry for more. I decided to do a Google search of similar books and The Wedding came up on several articles so I decided to give the book a second shot. I was fortunate enough to run across a couple of other bookstagrammers that happened to want to read the book too (Hi @SubwayReads and @hayinas7) and we decided to buddy read it together! Books are always better when shared with buddies.
To my surprise, I really enjoyed this one. A lot of focus on skin color in this book and the hierarchy of family members simply based on the color of their skin. It's relatable to the world today. One of the things I loved most was how the story followed different characters and the stories some how intertwined and connected each of these people. There's a family tree in the beginning that I had to refer to several times to keep my people straight in my mind. It was kind of fascinating. Overall I rated this one 4 stars. The ending was completely unexpected. So glad I picked this one back up.
"When I pinch myself, I don't feel colored. I just feel the hurt of it- maybe that's what being colored means for most of us. You feel the hurt of it."
Rewind 8 or 9 years later and I had just completed the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy by Kevin Kwan and I was hungry for more. I decided to do a Google search of similar books and The Wedding came up on several articles so I decided to give the book a second shot. I was fortunate enough to run across a couple of other bookstagrammers that happened to want to read the book too (Hi @SubwayReads and @hayinas7) and we decided to buddy read it together! Books are always better when shared with buddies.
To my surprise, I really enjoyed this one. A lot of focus on skin color in this book and the hierarchy of family members simply based on the color of their skin. It's relatable to the world today. One of the things I loved most was how the story followed different characters and the stories some how intertwined and connected each of these people. There's a family tree in the beginning that I had to refer to several times to keep my people straight in my mind. It was kind of fascinating. Overall I rated this one 4 stars. The ending was completely unexpected. So glad I picked this one back up.
"When I pinch myself, I don't feel colored. I just feel the hurt of it- maybe that's what being colored means for most of us. You feel the hurt of it."
domeniqueh's review
3.0
Slow then woah...
Took me a while to read this one. Found myself stuck in the first half of the novel, then all of the sudden, with 40/50 pages left, i was immersed. The ending was not what I expected; I even got bug eyed for a second at that crazy outcome. Not sure what to do with the story in its totality. There were parts i liked, parts that felt too slow, parts that went by pretty fast. At its foundation, the story has good elements. I also like a story that speaks to the harsh realities of racism and colorism.
Took me a while to read this one. Found myself stuck in the first half of the novel, then all of the sudden, with 40/50 pages left, i was immersed. The ending was not what I expected; I even got bug eyed for a second at that crazy outcome. Not sure what to do with the story in its totality. There were parts i liked, parts that felt too slow, parts that went by pretty fast. At its foundation, the story has good elements. I also like a story that speaks to the harsh realities of racism and colorism.
red_steele's review against another edition
3.0
1. Voice actor - 3 stars
2. The book was too short, it needed about 100 more pages.
3. Some of the writing was obscure.
2. The book was too short, it needed about 100 more pages.
3. Some of the writing was obscure.