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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
A very atmospheric novel (good at talking about night), but with somewhat simplistic politics and a kind of puzzling middle section.
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
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
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Mostly good and in a couple places a great book. It made me break out laughing a few times. Overall its sad in a resigned and cynical way. Despite that, its clearly written by someone who still finds tremendous good and beauty in the world. Lots of existentialism going on, too. The pacing and style are kind of inconsistent, sometimes the detailed writing makes for slow going. There are interesting perspectives, it sounds like it was (maybe still is?) rough times in post-colonial, revolutionary Ghana. Author doesn't seem to like women much, despite railing against all other kinds of injustice.
I've spent a good deal of my life carefully fine tuning my reading in an effort to pierce the veil of my hyperlocalized US WASP life and get the sort of enrichment required that, should it all come crashing down, I'll see it as the rebirth the world so sorely needed and not get sucked into the doomsday paradigm of the many who consider themselves above all that. The problem, of course, is when one is veering away from the 'popular' structure, the 'professional' structure often proves the status quo's backup plan, and so my delving into the 1001 and co. and parsing out anyone not white for especial perusal made for a rather half-assed lesson plan, where every step forward had a 25-75% chance of being two steps backward. This particular book showcases a very thought-heavy viewpoint of Ghana in the aftermath of the supposed decolonized/socialist revolution, which in many ways works against the stereotypes and other literary dehumanizations that the mainstream continues to evoke of "African" writing in the 21st century. However, I've gone some way into growing out of the need to hash out the academic merits whilst composing my personal opinion, so while this text is extremely valuable in the bigger picture of literature as a whole, it's also deceptively myopic, ideologically heavy handed, and lays on the metaphors of excrement thickly enough to desensitize most readers whose experience would otherwise benefit from such pathos. Then again, considering its reception in the white world, perhaps that's exactly what the typical white reader needs. I suppose I should be pleased to no longer be at that stage that needs Plato's Cave copy pasted out every so often (as happens in this work) to relearn what should never be forgotten.
reflective
slow-paced
Really good ending, had lots of proverbs and a unique message, but the first 100 pages felt unreadable at times.
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated