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siobhanward's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
NYT Notable Books 2019: 52/100
I wish this book had been longer. I rarely say that about books, but in this case, it felt like there were so many plots and none of them got enough attention: Josephine and Charlotte, Josephine's past, Ava and her grandma, Ava's mother. It felt like just as things were ramping up and things were starting to come together, everything ended and that was it. It was a solid plot and I loved the characters, but it felt like all this tension was created and then it ended abruptly without anything being resolved. I know that not everything ends happily, but some resolution would have been nice.
I wish this book had been longer. I rarely say that about books, but in this case, it felt like there were so many plots and none of them got enough attention: Josephine and Charlotte, Josephine's past, Ava and her grandma, Ava's mother. It felt like just as things were ramping up and things were starting to come together, everything ended and that was it. It was a solid plot and I loved the characters, but it felt like all this tension was created and then it ended abruptly without anything being resolved. I know that not everything ends happily, but some resolution would have been nice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Slavery, and Murder
Moderate: Child death and Pregnancy
rebecca__m's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
I am currently in the process of reading another book by authors I have given two stars. This book was an ideal candidate because it was short, had some likable characters, and had an intriguing plot.
After finishing the first "chapter" I was feeling pretty optimistic. I liked Ava and her family, and the plot was intriguing enough to make me want to keep reading. By the time I finished "chapter 2" I was still feeling optimistic, albeit a bit less. I didn't dislike Josephine or where her story was going, I just wasn't as intrigued as I had been with Ava's story. Also, I felt like Josephine could come off as a bit arrogant and rude. She kind of reminded me of the way Mary McLeod Bethune was portrayed in The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray.
Things I liked:
+ I appreciated the three different timelines (Josephine's story was split into two timelines) were easy to keep track of.
+ The author did a good job depicting slavery and racism in a way that expressed the brutality of the two topics but was not overly gruesome.
+ I'm not sure if this was the author's intent, but there were definitely some sentences that I read that I interpreted as a subtle reminder that racism can go both ways.
+ I thought that the author did an amazing job wrapping everything up in the end.
Overall I enjoyed this book, but in the future, I think I will listen to this author on audio since there were some moments I found myself skiming. (I think that this book would translate really well to audio, if you are somebody who prefers audiobooks.)
After finishing the first "chapter" I was feeling pretty optimistic. I liked Ava and her family, and the plot was intriguing enough to make me want to keep reading. By the time I finished "chapter 2" I was still feeling optimistic, albeit a bit less. I didn't dislike Josephine or where her story was going, I just wasn't as intrigued as I had been with Ava's story. Also, I felt like Josephine could come off as a bit arrogant and rude. She kind of reminded me of the way Mary McLeod Bethune was portrayed in The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray.
Things I liked:
+ I appreciated the three different timelines (Josephine's story was split into two timelines) were easy to keep track of.
+ The author did a good job depicting slavery and racism in a way that expressed the brutality of the two topics but was not overly gruesome.
+ I'm not sure if this was the author's intent, but there were definitely some sentences that I read that I interpreted as a subtle reminder that racism can go both ways.
+ I thought that the author did an amazing job wrapping everything up in the end.
Overall I enjoyed this book, but in the future, I think I will listen to this author on audio since there were some moments I found myself skiming. (I think that this book would translate really well to audio, if you are somebody who prefers audiobooks.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and Dementia
Moderate: Cancer and Death
Minor: Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Miscarriage, and Abandonment
beetandbaguette's review
medium-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
smalika's review
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Dementia, and Murder
javafenn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It took me a few days to write a review because this book was very emotional and I needed to clarify my thoughts. The story is told from 3 different timelines involving 2 different women basically sewing together how the past affects the future generations. The realities of slavery and post slavery was tough but the horrors of slavery and all the racism that followed are real and tough. The story itself was amazing. I enjoyed the magical aspect of it and I really loved how strong Josephine and Ava truly were despite not exactly knowing it at first. Both had sons that were facing a scary world for Black men and both had passions for healing. At the end of the book Josephine suffers a horrific and graphic loss shortly after gaining a new grandchild. I needed a few minutes to continue on from that point because there wasn’t much left in the book. I was shattered when it happened. I almost felt it was unnecessary but things like that happened and I’m not one to say how racism against Black people should be displayed in a book written by a Black person. That combined with the fact that the story got a bit confusing around 2/3 of the way through is why this is 3.5 stars. It’s definitely a good book and the narrators are great but it is heavy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Dementia, Grief, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcohol and Classism
technicallyaly's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Racism, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Slavery and Violence
melissathejan's review
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"I walk her to the fields her grandfather laid out, point out the potatoes, the tomatoes, the corn.
'You look at it from this angle and life is all the way good, baby girl,' I tell her. 'You look at it from this angle and you can have anything your little heart can dream up. Anything,' I repeat, and the lie trips in my throat, but I repeat it anyway because maybe for her it will be true. Doesn't make it any less true because I said it." (260-261)
'You look at it from this angle and life is all the way good, baby girl,' I tell her. 'You look at it from this angle and you can have anything your little heart can dream up. Anything,' I repeat, and the lie trips in my throat, but I repeat it anyway because maybe for her it will be true. Doesn't make it any less true because I said it." (260-261)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Slavery
Moderate: Death and Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage and Violence
franklybookish's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Infertility, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Murder