Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Sankofa

This is an enjoyable story with an interesting concept, but it can get dark at times. It also has a very vague ending—there are a couple of different possibilities that I can easily see for the ending, but I have no idea which direction that finale is intended to go. It's neat and I enjoyed reading it, but it's also definitely unsettling.

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nalice's review against another edition

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slow-paced

2.5

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ayana's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-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

4.5

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podanotherjessi's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

This book is much less about the characters or the plot and more about the emotions explored. It's about grief and loneliness and isolation. After the past year (I'm writing in 2021, for anyone finding this review in the future), it was strangely relatable and almost comforting. To see this young girl suffer through being alone and come out stronger for it was powerful. I'm not sure how I would have felt if I had read this at any other time, but right now, it just felt like something was right about it. And I will definitely be thinking about this for a while.

Characters: 8
Plot: 9
Setting: 9
Writing Style: 10
General appeal: 9
Originality: 9
Ending: 6

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bi_n_large's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

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bluejayreads's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

4.5

The back cover of this book is kind of misleading, but I don't really blame it because it would be hard to write a description of what happens in this book that doesn't sound incredibly boring. There is no greater purpose for Sankofa. But this book isn't about that. It's not really about a plot at all. It's about Sankofa, a girl who can kill with a thought and can't always control it and whom everyone fears because of it.

This story is, overwhelmingly, a tragedy. It is the story of Sankofa, a child, a young child, losing everything and everyone she knew and cared about again and again and again. The first time this happens she is seven, when she loses her family and her town and her name and everything she ever knew in one moment of disaster. With no home, no name, and no one to help her, she begins chasing something that was stolen from her.

All technology dies under her touch, but she doesn't even need touch to kill a human. Stories of her spread, and people fear her, and many hate what they fear. She is alone except for her fox companion. Every single refuge she finds is eventually destroyed or she is driven away by those who fear her power of death and hate what they fear. And as I read, all I could think was, She is a child. She is a child. She is seven, eight, nine, ten years old. She is too young for your hate and fear. She does not want to kill you. She is a child who has lost everything too many times to count. Have compassion.

But of course, there are children her age and younger in our real world also who face anger and fear and hatred from adults for something they cannot control and did not choose.

This is not a happy book. It isn't long, but the emotions it contains are large. This is a small story of big feelings, grief and loss and pain and being a child alone in the world and hated for something you are that you did not ask for, did not choose, and can't stop being. It is beautiful and vivid and intense and engrossing despite the lack of discernable plot and, above all else, heartbreaking.

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jojo_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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