warren_chu's review against another edition
5.0
heart hurt the whole way through. Yaa Gyasi so so talented.
msvenner's review against another edition
4.0
This is a beautiful story with wonderful prose. I found it slow at points and I don’t know if that was more about my mood or the book itself. I’d love to chat with someone else who has read it (I miss book club!). I did not like this as much as Homegoing, the author’s debut novel. However, I really enjoyed the exploration of faith through the competing views of evangelicalism and science. I also liked the way the book looked at mental health through the immigrant experience and it’s impact on family. There is a lot to unpack with this book.
danie_joye_breit's review against another edition
5.0
This book speaks to anyone who has tried using faith, then education, to explore the mysterious parts of her life. Gyasi's writing is intimate enough that you see yourself on her characters; instead of pondering Gifty's actions and motivations, you question your own.
dllh's review against another edition
4.0
I was eager to read this one, as I had liked Gyasi's Homegoing. She does here in what seems like an effortless way what Powers often sort of shambles through trying to do -- marrying the technical or scientific to human emotion or experience. Of course I don't mean that it was effortless to do, but Gyasi does it more cleanly, more readably. I did feel like there was some slack in parts of the book (though it's pretty short), and individual relationships didn't always feel all that authentic, but overall, it was a good book, and somebody was clearly slicing a lot of onions near me as I read the closing chapters.
ssebro's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-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? Yes
5.0
lilaluna's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sunchica's review against another edition
5.0
I could not put this book down. Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing was one of the best books I’ve read this year, and Transcendent Kingdom is an incredible follow-up. There are so many layers - from belief in God straddled with a career in neuroscience, to institutional racism and what it’s like to be a black girl growing up in the South, to the life of an immigrant family trying to build a life in America, the bond between mother and daughter, sister and brother, mother and son, and so much more. I can’t wait to see what she writes next.