Scan barcode
lanidacey's review against another edition
3.0
The sense of foreboding and eeriness that steeps the pages of this book make it an unpleasant read (although, perhaps also a very well-written one). The adult characters all make terrible decisions that have ruinous effects on the two child protagonists. Still, I'd say it's worth reading, if just to learn how to write mood.
Spoiler: Charlie is an asshole. He doesn't deserve the love.
Spoiler: Charlie is an asshole. He doesn't deserve the love.
geckoedit's review against another edition
4.0
If your family was invited to adopt a chimpanzee, and treat him as a child or sibling, would you do it? In Kaitlyn Greenidge’s startling debut novel, the Freeman family do just that: they move into a Chimpanzee research institute on the “white side of town” and adopt Charlie, teaching him sign language in an effort to communicate with animals.
I read an excerpt of this novel in the Algonquin catalogue and was intrigued by the premise. It did not disappoint: an African American family during the civil rights movement, working with chimpanzees. I was eager to see the family dynamic with the chimp. To be honest, I expected something a bit Doctor Doolittle-y, but with a dose of social awareness on top of it. This novel is nothing like that. Instead, it focuses on the elder daughter’s perspective, as she watches her family rise and fall as a result of their involvement in the experiment. It also switches back and forth with Nymphadora, a woman in 1929 who is also involved in experiments at the Chimpanzee research institute. The juxtaposition of the stories raises some difficult questions.
Greenidge’s writing style is subtle and authentic, and the words disappear as you are immersed in the story – a sign of good writing. She is able to convey a strong political message without being didactic: the complexity of the situation slowly reveals itself and the reader is left to make her own mind up about the ethics or morality of it. I liked that it made me think, and it also made me question my own preconceptions and prejudices.
While I gained insight into Nymphadora and Charlotte’s minds, I was less able to connect with the background characters – Charlotte’s father, mother and sister. It meant that I was less emotionally affected by what happened to them. Consequently, the dramatic climax of the novel was less dramatic, to me, and seemed to be cast behind a hazy smoke; it was rushed and could have been a little better.
The strength of the novel is in the complexity of the ideas. Our connectedness to others, of different races and different species, based on love, as it clashes with the prejudices that led people to mistakenly place each other in categories of consciousness or awareness, without ever trying to communicate or understand each other. It is, primarily, a novel about communication and what happens when communication breaks down because of false assumptions.
This was an excellent debut novel, and I would put it on recommended reading lists for high school students, college students, or book clubs – there are plenty of interesting aspects for discussion and it is absolutely a novel that needs to be part of our conversation.
“This car doesn’t feel like ours,” I said.
“Well, it is now,” my father replied. “So get used to it.”
Outside of the car it was dark and hot and early morning August in Dorchester. Though the crack of the window, I could smell every part of the city – every slab of asphalt, every rotten plank of wood siding, every crumbling stucco wall, every scarred and skinny tree – I could smell all of it beginning to sweat.
I read an excerpt of this novel in the Algonquin catalogue and was intrigued by the premise. It did not disappoint: an African American family during the civil rights movement, working with chimpanzees. I was eager to see the family dynamic with the chimp. To be honest, I expected something a bit Doctor Doolittle-y, but with a dose of social awareness on top of it. This novel is nothing like that. Instead, it focuses on the elder daughter’s perspective, as she watches her family rise and fall as a result of their involvement in the experiment. It also switches back and forth with Nymphadora, a woman in 1929 who is also involved in experiments at the Chimpanzee research institute. The juxtaposition of the stories raises some difficult questions.
What I envy is not their skin but their insouciance. I envy the freedom to sin with only a little bit of consequence, to commit one selfish act and not have it mean the downfall of my entire people. Where indecency and mischief do not mean annihilation. I envy that their capacity for love is already assumed, not set aside or presumed missing, like it is for us Negro women.
Greenidge’s writing style is subtle and authentic, and the words disappear as you are immersed in the story – a sign of good writing. She is able to convey a strong political message without being didactic: the complexity of the situation slowly reveals itself and the reader is left to make her own mind up about the ethics or morality of it. I liked that it made me think, and it also made me question my own preconceptions and prejudices.
One of the most important things Mumma drilled into me was never to let a white person think that they knew you. In Spring City, Mumma and Pop and all the other Stars and Saturnites were planets, possessing deep and mysterious seas, complicated deserts, forests of knowledge and pain. but step across the border into Courtland County and they were little more than rocks, pebbles really, to the white people that lived there. Small and insignificant, without the weight or density to command even the smallest orbit. Mumma told me that this underestimation was an advantage. It meant you could do things white people would never even know about. Your invisibility was your power.
While I gained insight into Nymphadora and Charlotte’s minds, I was less able to connect with the background characters – Charlotte’s father, mother and sister. It meant that I was less emotionally affected by what happened to them. Consequently, the dramatic climax of the novel was less dramatic, to me, and seemed to be cast behind a hazy smoke; it was rushed and could have been a little better.
This was the one thing about Charlie that had fascinated him: did chimpanzees, like humans, contain a multitude of selves? When he’d raised the question with Laurel, playfully, one night early on in the experiment, as they lay before sleep, she’d gotten indignant. “Of course they do,” she’d sputtered. But the way she’d said it, it was obvious she hadn’t thought of it before, was only defending this answer because she loved Charlie and couldn’t bear to think of him as different from herself.
The strength of the novel is in the complexity of the ideas. Our connectedness to others, of different races and different species, based on love, as it clashes with the prejudices that led people to mistakenly place each other in categories of consciousness or awareness, without ever trying to communicate or understand each other. It is, primarily, a novel about communication and what happens when communication breaks down because of false assumptions.
That was, perhaps, the source of their cleaving in a nutshell. Laurel could not conceive of anyone that she loved as not being of the same mind as her. That is what she’d said when he’d raged at her about it all… “I never asked because I thought you would agree, Charles. I thought we were of the same mind.” Himself, he knew he could love those of a different mind, but even he had his limits.
This was an excellent debut novel, and I would put it on recommended reading lists for high school students, college students, or book clubs – there are plenty of interesting aspects for discussion and it is absolutely a novel that needs to be part of our conversation.
mbincolor's review against another edition
3.0
I already knew what to expect when I started reading "We Love You, Charlie Freeman."
This debut novel by Kaitlyn Greenidge follows the Freeman family as they integrate an abandoned chimpanzee into their lives, and teach him sign language at the Toneybee Institute for Ape Research.
The two human Freeman children, Charlotte and Callie, learn to adjust to their new “brother” and their predominately white surroundings as the twisted history of Toneybee comes to light.
Any aware American could guess at the plotline in a book about black people, monkeys and a predominately white town due to America’s history of experimenting on minorities without consent.
I enjoyed the writing and I loved the characters, however, I didn’t feel like there was any heartfelt call to action in regard to the historical practice of secretly experimenting on others to further scientific discovery. “We Love You, Charlie Freeman” would have felt more complete with a few hundred more pages, but I look forward to more from Greenidge.
This debut novel by Kaitlyn Greenidge follows the Freeman family as they integrate an abandoned chimpanzee into their lives, and teach him sign language at the Toneybee Institute for Ape Research.
The two human Freeman children, Charlotte and Callie, learn to adjust to their new “brother” and their predominately white surroundings as the twisted history of Toneybee comes to light.
Any aware American could guess at the plotline in a book about black people, monkeys and a predominately white town due to America’s history of experimenting on minorities without consent.
I enjoyed the writing and I loved the characters, however, I didn’t feel like there was any heartfelt call to action in regard to the historical practice of secretly experimenting on others to further scientific discovery. “We Love You, Charlie Freeman” would have felt more complete with a few hundred more pages, but I look forward to more from Greenidge.
fionak's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to like this book because it sounded like such an interesting premise but the multiple points of view (two 1st person narrators and 3rd person recounts of myriad other characters) ruined any sense of cohesion this tale might have had. At the end, I was left feeling like I had missed something because the resolution felt disjointed and abrupt, which is a shame as I found the book very readable.
Many thanks to Thomas Allen & Son for providing me with a free review copy.
Many thanks to Thomas Allen & Son for providing me with a free review copy.
meubanks's review against another edition
emotional
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
3.25
leafingthroughlife's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
2.75
jamiee_f's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely loved this book. I picked it up in an airport thinking it would be a quirky novel, but was so gripped by the way this book tackles race, adolescence, sexuality, and family secrets. None of these things are simple, and the book doesn't shy away from that complication. I loved that this book centered a queer black girl protagonist, and the way the author created this impeccably believable world. A strong 5 star rating, I'll be talking about this book to my friends for a while!