Reviews with content warning for Racism - The Other Black Girl

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris

193 reviews

lycheejelly's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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waterbear0821's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Fun and a bit spooky and very thought-provoking. Also a fast-paced read and the type of book where I would get so excited about what was coming my eyes would jump ahead on the page! My only qualms were sometimes the writing or word choice (“gallivanted out of the room?”) seems a little unpolished and it took me out of the story a tiny bit, but generally I really enjoyed the writing style and the narrative style. The characters seemed very real and were captivatingly complicated. The story was unsettling in the best, most interesting way. I can see why this was a bestseller (and is becoming a show) and I will definitely recommend this book to others.

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bookwormbi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

This was really good! I’m conflicted about how I feel about the pace, because on one hand not a lot happens in this book that is ostensibly a thriller, but on the other, I did love being immersed in Nella’s psychological world. Same with some of the characters feeling a little flat—that’s how they were to Nella, at this point in her life where she’s obsessed with Hazel, who really is the only character besides Nella that didn’t feel flat to me. At the same time, I felt somewhat distant from Nella because of the close third, and way more connected to characters like Shawnee and Kendra Rae and Diana, who all had sections where they were the pov character. But again, every time I come upon something I didn’t like so much, I have a counter argument. The whole book feels like an homage to Passing (down to the main character’s name being Nella) and that novel is an absolute masterclass in close third. While I wouldn’t say TOBG is Passing levels of quality, Harris definitely evoked some of that psychological horror with her use of close third, distancing us just enough from Nella that we can see what’s happening to her just before she does. I don’t know. I definitely liked it a lot, and I’m excited to see the adaptation!

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cirrenamarie's review against another edition

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mysterious tense slow-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

Not very thrilling. The mystery is there but the pace makes it hard to stay engaged.

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wordsofclover's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

Nella is the only Black person working in Wagner publishing house and she's sick of being the token person of colouring and dealing with the microaggressions she encounters every day. So she's delighted when new girl Hazel, a Black girl from Harlem, starts and they become friends. But soon Nella notices that Hazel is acting differently, and in ways is making Nella look bad and her job performance is suffering. As things get tenser, and creepier, can Nella figure out what' up with Hazel?

I liked the writing style of this book and the atmosphere that was slight intense, unsettling and creepy at times. The environment of Wagner was created really well I think, and learning more about the publishing world in many ways from difficult authors and temperamental cover artists was quite fun at times, as well as getting a look at what's like to be a Black woman in a predominantly white environment and how some people behave and the microaggressions she has to deal with and sometimes ignore for an easier time with her colleagues.

I do feel like so much of this story was build up, and when we really start figuring out what is happening, the book is already 90% finished so I was a bit disappointed with the conclusion feeling very rushed then, and then the epilogue was twisty and fun but also slightly depressing and not the ending I would have wanted for Nella obviously.

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