Reviews tagging 'Genocide'

House of Stone by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma

7 reviews

mnatale100's review

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Colonisation, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, War, Addiction, Genocide, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Deportation, Death of parent, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Police brutality, and Sexual content

Minor: Infidelity

mmefish's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

This felt like two different books with two different ideas behind them put into one; a phycological thriller and a historical novel mismatch. The concept is ambitious but I don't think the execution is strong enough. 

I don't understand the reasoning behind writing a psychopath of a character that is Zamani, can't understand why we have to follow the events of the book through his eyes, read about his thoughts, his made-up scenarios. The "revelations" of the last chapters are not revelations at all—it's easy to guess what exactly happened by much earlier in the book—and so the invention of his character makes for a weird choice (serving what purpose exactly?), keeping in mind what the other half of the novel talks about. 

And the other half is this: Zimbabwean genocide; the (separate) lives and griefs of a married couple. 

But because the book spends too much time on Zamani, all of that painful imagery, all that history kind of gets brushed aside at the end – unfinished, perfunctory, forgotten. Maybe that's exactly the point but again, the way the novel deliveres it confused me.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Torture, Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Murder, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Rape, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Excrement, and Pregnancy

VERY graphic rape+murder scene. Very graphic murder of a pregnant woman and the death of her fetus.

quinnjuliac's review

adventurous challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

3.75

I’m glad I stuck with this book although the first 1/3 of it was challenging. The narrator is very unreliable and the tale is quite meandering, but throughout the book it becomes clear what is being intentionally concealed from vs revealed to the reader. The book gave really vivid insight into the range of traumas the people of Zimbabwe have experienced over the last 50 years and how their traumas impact their relationships and families and are passed on through generations. I kind of had to resolve to stick with this book as it wasn’t clear where it was going to go for a lot of the time. In summary I’m glad I read it.  Holy content warning!! Watch out if you struggle with violence or genocide.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual assault, Murder, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Child death, Grief, Alcohol, Violence, Death, Colonisation, and Animal cruelty

hannahleewhite's review

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Miscarriage, and Genocide

natalieba's review

challenging dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Murder, and Genocide

browngirlreading's review

dark informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

House of Stone is the history of Zimbabwe from the 70s - liberation struggle, the 80s genocide,and the 90s the golden years. The story is narrated by Zumani a deranged young man who is trying to become the new son and member of a family. It's through this couple that we are introduced to the horrors, fear, and silence of a nation. The "comic farce with seriousness" we experience through Zumani grabs the reader and won't let go. His craziness goes crescendo just to the end of the book. This historical fiction story builds the reality of House of Stone, Zimbabwe. Novuyo Rosa Tshuma spent 6 years writing and crafting this brilliant work that left me instructed and stupefied. This is a debut novel that doesn't have any real faults in my opinion. I can't get over how well these puzzle pieces fit together perfectly to show the history of a country. I highly recommend this book and I also recommend the audiobook which I had the pleasure of listening to while reading books 2 and 3 of the book.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Rape, Torture, and Violence

ellekhupe's review

dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

 This was an incredibly difficult book for me to read. Difficult because it was personal. It was devastating and it left me reeling. It's a story that needed to be told. It's a story that many people who, like me are from the part of Zimbabwe where this story is set, grew up hearing stories like this one, but there's something about seeing the story written down that's both powerful and heartbreaking. I didn't particularly enjoy the writing style but a MUST read if you have any interest in some of Zimbabwe's history during and shortly after independence. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Domestic abuse

Minor: Alcoholism