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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
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:
Complicated
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.5 stars. Awesome and emotional story. Really enjoyed it.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
Maame is a powerful, thought-provoking debut that resonated deeply with me. I appreciated Jessica George's nuanced portrayal of grief, identity, and family. The writing style is engaging and the characters are well-developed and feel authentic. This book hit close to home and it managed to make me laugh out loud. And cry. A lot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Death of parent
Minor: Racism
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
LOVED this book. It’s a coming of age story but for twenty-something’s. I related to Maame a ton and it was really cool to hear her inner thoughts as she found herself.
emotional
medium-paced
MAAME by Jessica George is a novel set in London featuring characters with Ghanaian heritage.
Maddie is a 20-something Black woman living in London. Her mother spends months or years in Ghana, so Maddie takes care of her father who has Parkinson's Disease. After being fired from a job at a theater, she takes an administrative position for a publishing company.
Maddie has the opportunity to move out when her mother returns to England. She finds a new apartment and starts dating. When her father dies on his birthday, Maddie is consumed by guilt.
Her new job is challenging as the bosses fail to acknowledge her contributions to the team. She has a fight with her roommates. She has a string of bad relationships. Her brother takes her for granted. Her bond with her mother is frayed. She feels like it's just all a bit too much.
But as she grieves, she begins to understand her work environment and she starts dating someone who respects what she does and the pressures she feels with her family. She finally has discussions with her mother and brother about her role in the family.
I've heard it said that your 20's are a defining decade, and this book illustrates how much there is to learn about oneself, family, careers, friendship, and romance.
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
funny
lighthearted
sad
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:
Complicated
I started this book at 4pm when I was a little bit tipsy (I went to bottomless brunch, I don't have a problem I promise) and the next thing I knew I had read half of it!
There are many reasons that you pick up a book (most of the time it is obligation and or a desire to be 'a reader'). But the best reason to pick up a book is pure emotional attachment.
Maame is a book club pick for Feminist Fiction (a book club I have been desperate to join for months) but I wasn't initially drawn to the novel - I literally would not have picked this up if it wasn't for a group of Liverpool based feminist readers who chose this as their April book selection. I went from reading for obligation (and the potential for new friends) but ended up devouring the book because it is truley phenomenal!
At the start of the book, Maddie is working a dead end job to support her father. She is a live in career for him and basically his only support system. Her absent mother and flighty brother refuse to share the burden of his Parkinson's disease. Not only is she doing it all by herself, but she is also keeping it all to herself. She is distant from everyone around her and the novel follows her as she develops her relationships and moves out of her family home.
Maddie is a character you can't help but relate to. She is struggling with familial relationships, being honest, and engaging in life. These experiences are universal and so wonderfully described by Jessica George.
Discussing my connection to Maddie is a disservice to the novel. Maddie faces common issues, but her experiences are nothing but common. She is a career with a Ghanaian heritage and you cannot read this novel without acknowledging that her experience is specific to her culture and situation.
Perhaps it is better to discuss empathy in relation to this novel. Fiction offers you insight into other people and that's what this novel does. Sure I related to Maddie at times, but I felt like I understood Maddie. I felt her pain, I saw her vulnerability, and I watched her grow. By the end I felt like a proud parent. I cheered and I cried. A perfect book.
There are many reasons that you pick up a book (most of the time it is obligation and or a desire to be 'a reader'). But the best reason to pick up a book is pure emotional attachment.
Maame is a book club pick for Feminist Fiction (a book club I have been desperate to join for months) but I wasn't initially drawn to the novel - I literally would not have picked this up if it wasn't for a group of Liverpool based feminist readers who chose this as their April book selection. I went from reading for obligation (and the potential for new friends) but ended up devouring the book because it is truley phenomenal!
At the start of the book, Maddie is working a dead end job to support her father. She is a live in career for him and basically his only support system. Her absent mother and flighty brother refuse to share the burden of his Parkinson's disease. Not only is she doing it all by herself, but she is also keeping it all to herself. She is distant from everyone around her and the novel follows her as she develops her relationships and moves out of her family home.
Maddie is a character you can't help but relate to. She is struggling with familial relationships, being honest, and engaging in life. These experiences are universal and so wonderfully described by Jessica George.
Discussing my connection to Maddie is a disservice to the novel. Maddie faces common issues, but her experiences are nothing but common. She is a career with a Ghanaian heritage and you cannot read this novel without acknowledging that her experience is specific to her culture and situation.
Perhaps it is better to discuss empathy in relation to this novel. Fiction offers you insight into other people and that's what this novel does. Sure I related to Maddie at times, but I felt like I understood Maddie. I felt her pain, I saw her vulnerability, and I watched her grow. By the end I felt like a proud parent. I cheered and I cried. A perfect book.