Scan barcode
positivewoman2013's review against another edition
5.0
The story continues and so does the love. I love the carnation tradition one we follow in my family.
leslico's review against another edition
5.0
This is an epic, heart-wrenching historical fiction story about two families, one Black and one White, whose lives have been interconnected for many generations. This 4th and final book in the series takes place in the early twentieth century and brings up issues of racial injustice, women's rights, gentrification, WWI and the influenza pandemic, all while focusing on the specific lives and struggles of two main characters, May and Naomi.
This is the first book I've read by Laila Ibrahim, and I really enjoyed the story but felt so much for both the main characters that I now want to go back and read the whole series and find out more about what their ancestors lived through. I wish it was more widely available at libraries, I will be asking if my local library would be willing to purchase a copy!
This is the first book I've read by Laila Ibrahim, and I really enjoyed the story but felt so much for both the main characters that I now want to go back and read the whole series and find out more about what their ancestors lived through. I wish it was more widely available at libraries, I will be asking if my local library would be willing to purchase a copy!
susanp's review
4.0
Fourth book in a series. Definitely read Yellow Crocus, Mustard Seed, and Golden Poppies first. I didn't feel this one was nearly so good as the others, more a history lesson of what was happening later in the characters' lives.
kdurham2's review
4.0
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
Naomi and May come from the same lineage, but have very different life experiences, partly because of their skin color and the basic opportunities that come with that. May is a young white woman who thinks that she is on the cusp of her life coming together and all of her dreams being met. Naomi is a mother of grown children and a leader of the NAACP she is fighting each day for the rights that her community should have at this moment in time.
Naomi and May come from the same lineage, but have very different life experiences, partly because of their skin color and the basic opportunities that come with that. May is a young white woman who thinks that she is on the cusp of her life coming together and all of her dreams being met. Naomi is a mother of grown children and a leader of the NAACP she is fighting each day for the rights that her community should have at this moment in time.
susanthebookbag's review against another edition
5.0
Life was hard in 1915, especially for women, and particularly for black women. Scarlet Carnation explores the lives of two women who are struggling with different situations of those times. One white, one black, tied together through their pasts and their grandmothers, they find themselves fighting the injustices forced upon them.
May and Naomi are family and through the pages of the book, I came to feel like family to them as well. This was a hard book to read at times, just because of the struggles they each were having to endure, but uplifting and beautiful at the same time. These were two very strong and resilient women who did whatever they needed to do for their families.
Scarlet Carnation is an outstanding historical fiction story, demonstrating the hard times of the early twentieth-century and the resiliency of the people that lived through it. I highly recommend it!
May and Naomi are family and through the pages of the book, I came to feel like family to them as well. This was a hard book to read at times, just because of the struggles they each were having to endure, but uplifting and beautiful at the same time. These were two very strong and resilient women who did whatever they needed to do for their families.
Scarlet Carnation is an outstanding historical fiction story, demonstrating the hard times of the early twentieth-century and the resiliency of the people that lived through it. I highly recommend it!
bonniereads777's review against another edition
3.0
Scarlet Carnation appears to be the continuation of the characters from a prior series which I have not read. In this novel, May is a young white woman and Naomi is an older black woman, but they are related through their grandmothers due to events in a prior book. May is young and eager to be married, and Naomi is a nurse who deals with racism on a daily basis, but even more when she buys a new house. I read this as a standalone, but might have connected more with the characters if I read the previous series.
Some of the many topics discussed in this book include birth control, eugenics, racism, single motherhood, World War II, Margaret Sanger, and the suffragist movement. And that's not all of them. The multitude of topics may have contributed to my inability to connect with the book as a whole. There's also a definite undertone of current politics, although this book takes place in 1915.
Overall I enjoyed the stories of May and Naomi, but I think the topics attempted should have been reduced. I also would have liked their lives to entwine a bit more than they did.
I received a free copy of this book from Wunderkind PR. I also downloaded it on Kindle Unlimited, where subscribers can read it for free. My review is voluntary and my opinions are my own.
Some of the many topics discussed in this book include birth control, eugenics, racism, single motherhood, World War II, Margaret Sanger, and the suffragist movement. And that's not all of them. The multitude of topics may have contributed to my inability to connect with the book as a whole. There's also a definite undertone of current politics, although this book takes place in 1915.
Overall I enjoyed the stories of May and Naomi, but I think the topics attempted should have been reduced. I also would have liked their lives to entwine a bit more than they did.
I received a free copy of this book from Wunderkind PR. I also downloaded it on Kindle Unlimited, where subscribers can read it for free. My review is voluntary and my opinions are my own.
jove64's review against another edition
5.0
I have been enjoying Laila Ibrahim's novels and this one does not disappoint. Family. Community. An insight into how system racism and ableism intersects with individual choices and community support. A good subplot about class and attitudes to women's work and marriage.
bhunsberger's review against another edition
4.0
I received an advanced copy of this book.
This story is set in the early 1900s when the country is dealing with racial injustice and then WW1. May and Naomi are distant cousins. May is white, and Naomi is black, and they both experience life in different ways during this time. You get to know these two women, their families, and their values.
This story is set in the early 1900s when the country is dealing with racial injustice and then WW1. May and Naomi are distant cousins. May is white, and Naomi is black, and they both experience life in different ways during this time. You get to know these two women, their families, and their values.