Reviews - Transcendent Kingdom

11.6k reviews for:

Transcendent Kingdom

Yaa Gyasi

4.2 AVERAGE

lizzybc1999's review against another edition

3.0

emotional sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I had really high expectations going into this book as Homegoing was one of my top reads of las year. While Gyasi writing is still beautiful, this book did not hit the same way for me. Overall, I found the book very depressing with Gifty life appearing joyless. I also think the mixed timeline killed any kind of tension in the book, leading to an overall flatness. While there was some beautiful passages I didn’t not feel motivated to read this book. I also felt like I did not learn anything new about the characters after the first 100-pages. Gyasi did a good job painting a tight portrait of these characters, however that left little to learn and the flashbacks often felt purposeless.

turtlebean's review against another edition

3.0

Three stars feels harsh - this wasn't an unpleasant read! It's just that Homegoing is a REALLY tough act to follow; aaand this had a bit too much grappling with Christianity for my little atheist heart.

meghanward's review against another edition

4.0

Really moving at some points and beautifully written but I felt like I wanted more out of every storyline she introduced… many of them trail off or just end in a way that isn’t satisfying

Still think the overall themes about god and science and meaning are interesting to explore even if they feel like they’ve been done before

Makes me want to read homegoing to see what all THATS about

ribbonreuben's review against another edition

4.5

challenging dark hopeful medium-paced

haley_kay's review against another edition

4.75

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

pogostick's review against another edition

5.0

this was absolutely stunning. so much depth and strength in the main character i've never rooted for someone more. (i've also never rooted for a little bald limping mouse more <3) the theme of the complexities of faith is one i couldn't exactly relate to personally but something i've been very interested in lately, and this book handled it in such an emotionally intimate way. i didn't really know what to make of the ending at first bc i feel like i still had unanswered questions and more things i wanted to understand, but after thinking about it for days it actually feels like that was the whole point? regardless this was super thought provoking and some of the most beautiful writing i've ever come across in my life :)

rhoffmanjones's review against another edition

4.0

Sparse and beautiful writing, there's no filler in my opinion. Characters are complex and thoughtful and muse on the beauties and limits of faith and science