Reviews - La Bastarda | The StoryGraph

As the first novel translated into English and written by an Equatorial Guinean woman, I was rather curious about this relatively short book and what was in store for me. La Bastarda is very much a coming-of-age novel about a girl who, in a way, reaches self-actualization toward the end, after much conflict with traditions and cultural expectations. It was also interesting to learn more about Equatorial Guinea through the eyes of a teenage girl, and I felt that Obono did an excellent job at presenting her sincere perspective as she tried to make sense of her own sexuality in a deeply patriarchal society.

I think what fell short for me with La Bastarda was that I wanted more than what was given. This novel doesn’t even hit a hundred pages, so I felt there were a lot of ideas and characters (including the protagonist) that could have been developed more. However, this could also be me missing things that Obono inferred, as I don’t know anything about the culture and history. As a result, the afterword ended up being rather useful to help contextualize some things, though I still felt that she could have developed the novel a bit more.

Lastly, I didn’t love the translation of the novel, which read somewhat stiffly to me. I’d be curious to know how the novel flows in the original Spanish.

Content Warnings

vicisbookblog's review

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challenging dark hopeful mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

katsareader's review

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funny hopeful sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

osstockton's review against another edition

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reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Complicated
Loveable characters? Complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated

3.5

anxatl's review

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emotional reflective medium-paced

3.25

havenmh's review against another edition

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2.0

story was good but i think the translation is just awful, the writing style is unbearable

mellie_me's review against another edition

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3.0

La Bastarda, the first novel written by an Equatorial Guinean woman translated into English, is about a girl’s search for authenticity bringing her into conflict with tradition and cultural expectations.

I’d highly recommend the book because of the unique perspective it provides - it’s a window into a remote village in Equatorial Guinea, a world of polygamous marriages, strict patriarchal rule, and witchcraft, where people seem to be viewed as assets of the patriarch, rather than individuals.

Although it’s not my favorite book ever, it’s definitely an eye-opener. (Also, it’s a quick read - the writing is pretty concise, without much extraneous detail - so you can get in international literature in translation without a huge time commitment.)

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