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levsin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Blood, Grief, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Death, Mental illness, Child death, Homophobia, Alcohol, Cursing, Bullying, and Car accident
hoiyan's review against another edition
emotional
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? Yes
4.75
Memory's got nothing to do with the old and grey and faraway gone. Memory's the muscle sting of now. A kid reaching brave in the skull hum of power.
wow. this is one of those books that punch you in the gut and you feel that hurt forever.
a story set in Scarborough about a first-gen Caribbean family that touches on being Black in Canada, and the ongoing grief that follows.
chariandy sets up the book slowly, using beautiful descriptions of Scarborough that change and adapt to the events happening at the time of the description, and makes the inanimate come to life.
the timeline going forward and back and forward again is pretty unorthodox, and was a bit confusing to keep track of which events happened when, but are vital to the storytelling. this novel's delivery almost mimics the memory flow of, you guessed it, a human being.
"Volume!" Every voice in the place together.
Volume!
the book focuses on heavy themes of grief, police brutality, racism, and the migrant experience in Canada living in a poverty-stricken area, but also turns readers' attention to the Black music culture, and heavily emphasizes the beauty and importance of music. the mentions of Black artists like Nina Simone, Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, Etta James contrasts the looming theme of racism in the book, and instead focuses on Black Excellence, especially in Michael and Francis' situation where their mother pushed "Your one and only chance," to climb higher (socially) and make it big in the world as a Black person in a White society.
this book gripped my little first-gen Canadian, child of an immigrant heart and didn't let go. i'm hesitating to give a full five stars due to one detail: chariandy using the homophobic f slur in his writing, and not as a reclamation. david chariandy is a cishet man, and has no right to use this slur, not even as another character speaking. he rightfully reclaimed the n slur in this book, but as a cishet man, had no right to use the homophobic f slur, no exceptions.
all in all, this book made me feel too much and made me want to cry one too many times. i highly recommend, and leave you with this:
this book gripped my little first-gen Canadian, child of an immigrant heart and didn't let go. i'm hesitating to give a full five stars due to one detail: chariandy using the homophobic f slur in his writing, and not as a reclamation. david chariandy is a cishet man, and has no right to use this slur, not even as another character speaking. he rightfully reclaimed the n slur in this book, but as a cishet man, had no right to use the homophobic f slur, no exceptions.
all in all, this book made me feel too much and made me want to cry one too many times. i highly recommend, and leave you with this:
"And if you can't memory right," he said, "you lose."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Hate crime, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, and Mental illness
Minor: Cancer, Death of parent, Homophobia, and Sexual content
karenaerts's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Grief, Mental illness, Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Alcohol, Cancer, Bullying, Car accident, Death of parent, Gun violence, Murder, and Sexual content
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