Reviews

Passing by Nella Larsen

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tomleetang's review against another edition

4.0

"She was caught between two allegiances, different yet the same: herself; her race."

Can wider societal issues like race be separated from individual domestic concerns? How do the two interact with one another? That is the kernel from which this succinct, precisely crafted work grows.

Passing is clearly situated in its period and place: it was first published in the late 1920s in America, and the narrowness of female lives as depicted is starkly different compared to today. It also examines the snobbery of the time between light-skinned blacks and dark-skinned blacks, as well as between those from more well-to-do black families and those from less sophisticated background - issues that continue to affect society, though the way we talk about them has evolved considerably.

More universally, it probes the tensions in marriages and families, and whether there is a natural kinship between people of the same race or if this is an illusion built upon shifting sands.

bookiebooks's review

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

jenmkin's review against another edition

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4.0

The way Nella Larson addresses the different viewpoints of passing is suuper interesting

lfredericks's review

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informative fast-paced

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

4.0

marie_cure's review against another edition

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4.0

I adore this book. It started as an English assignment, but it grasped my attention until the end. The Sunday afternoon I started it soon bled into the evening, and I returned home with the full intention to finish. Short, frantic, and fascinating, Passing opens up a world where Black women reveal race's amorphous boundaries. Irene's unreliability and self-contradiction make her an easily ridiculed protagonist, but pairs well with the plot's secrets. I love the opening scene, where the Drayton rooftop enforces Irene's superiority complex and reveals her own hand in passing. For some, the relationship between Claire and Irene beckons more intimacy than the book itself offers, and I think Irene recounts their reunion with the perfect amount of mystery to make this a true possibility.

If you have the time, Passing's literary criticism is worth reading. From the Rhinelander case to Jennifer DeVere Brody's publication in The JHU Press, there are many avenues to pursue the loose tendrils Nella Larsen leaves the reader.