Reviews

When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo

jessielavoieak's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

The prose the author uses takes some getting used to but really helps immerse you in the story. I struggled to make the connection between the folklore told in the beginning and the story lines of Emmanuel and Yejide. The last quarter was really great and it all came together but until that point, was a bit hard to follow for me.  

tessamoose's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.0

jennagoldblatt's review against another edition

5.0

Absolutely beautiful storytelling. The writing paints a brilliant picture for the reader and had me tearing up at the end. Thought a lot about my own lineage, growing up learning to ride a bike in the local cemetery with my grandfather, the big cemetery in Paris, and the thin line between life and death.

I truly do not understand the lower star ratings (on goodreads) — although different from my usual genre, this book is filled with life and myth from the start. 

I want to look more into the myth, history, and inspiration for this book and hope to read more by the author in the future. 

ecdereus's review against another edition

4.0

Een prachtig magisch-realistisch debuut.

and_opossum's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated

4.75

oliviawinchester's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense 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? No

5.0

leky_b's review against another edition

reflective

4.0

When We Were Birds is so beautifully crafted and had me thinking about it for days. So mysterious, so evocative of a different world. And I love a love story xxx

lexlibris's review against another edition

4.0

awwww love is real!!

darkskybooks's review against another edition

2.0

I found this a frustrating read. In many ways I respect that it is written in Trinidadian English, but as someone not used to the tense structure used in that vernacular it was a somewhat jarring read for me. My bigger issue was with pacing though - this novel starts extremely slowly and only marginally ups the pace. The magical realism is intriguing - the concept and theming of the book was done in a nice a haunting way, really leaning into some of the folk mysticism surrounding death in Caribbean cultures. The two main characters were likeable in there own way, but the fact it took until over halfway for them to come in contact left the start of book dragging.

Literary fiction is often a bit heavy for me and this was definitely on that side of the scale for me - I would call this a literary magical realism novel if I am trying to categorize. The prose is pretty, but again it acts as a speed bump on the story (my usual criticism of the more literary styles). For people who enjoy that style of writing, this is an excellent example of it. The fantastical elements were intriguing, but the pacing dragged to much for me to really enjoy it.

mowokalu's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.75