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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Alltid intressant med berättelser från andra delar av världen. Sättet boken var skriven på med du form drog mig in i berättelsen även om inte berättelsen berörde mig.
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The second person narrative made this an extremely difficult read. Some parts of the story were written in such a nonsensicle way. Major interesting plot points were skimmed over or completely obscured. I persevered, but I felt like I was completely dissociated most of the time reading paragraphs that had little relation to the previous paragraph or chapter. The ending was incredibly rushed. The story is a great concept but the execution is just abysmal in my opinion, and a different approach to writing would have made this story much easier to invest in as a reader. Every page shouldn't be an uphill battle to read, even if the main character is completely unlikable.
I read this without knowing this is the third installment from a trilogy. As it can be read as a standalone it also requires effort and it can be frustrating to some readers, I think readers who reads the two previous books can digest this story much more better and appreciates it more.
Having said that, the story was told from a second person of view and can be confusing at first. It took me longer to adapt to this point of view.
The story focusing on Tambu's life and her struggles to become successful despite her cultures, personal history, psychology, post war society,the racisms and corruptions of their country. There's a lot going on in this book.
I found that the name of the characters sometimes can be a bit confusing as it introduced as Freedom or Concept. Took me awhile sometimes to access that it's a character names actually. Some phrases can be quite challenging since it's not in english. Overall I love seeing how Tambu growing up, moulding into a better and better person and being successful and happy at it.
Having said that, the story was told from a second person of view and can be confusing at first. It took me longer to adapt to this point of view.
The story focusing on Tambu's life and her struggles to become successful despite her cultures, personal history, psychology, post war society,the racisms and corruptions of their country. There's a lot going on in this book.
I found that the name of the characters sometimes can be a bit confusing as it introduced as Freedom or Concept. Took me awhile sometimes to access that it's a character names actually. Some phrases can be quite challenging since it's not in english. Overall I love seeing how Tambu growing up, moulding into a better and better person and being successful and happy at it.
This book is grim and abrasive. The second person narration makes it feel accusatory. Tambudzai’s character never felt fully formed and tangible. I suspect this was all intentional, but it made for truly unpleasant reading.
Tambudzai is in the capital city of Harare. Her money is running dangerously low; though college educated, she cannot find work, and when the book opens she is on the verge of being evicted from a young women's hostel. She berates herself for giving up her cushy job in advertising, which she did out of principle: the white males at work took all the credit for her work.
Welcome to Zimbabwe of the 1990s, where disaffected war veterans are taking over white farmlands; where water and electricity can be sporadic in the cities and unknown in the villages, where corruption and violence are ever possible tensions. The book creates this edgy tension as Tambudzai herself edges towards a breakdown. Yet she, and all the women in the book, keep fighting to survive. Readers (including myself) who loved Dangarembga's debut classic Nervous Conditions will be glad to see the return of Tambu and her cousin Nyasha, two women who seek very different futures both for themselves and their country.
Though Tambu is an anti-hero, I really enjoyed this novel, which is honest in its depictions of both wealth and poverty, female ambition and competition, tradition and modernity. It is also honest about the mental illness these tensions produce. Technically it is the third in a trilogy, which began with the wonderful Nervous Conditions, continues with The Book of Not (which I did not enjoy) and culminates in this book. This is a multi-layered story which tackles many issues, never losing sight of the human beings caught up in a history they did not make, and a future they need to struggle for.
Welcome to Zimbabwe of the 1990s, where disaffected war veterans are taking over white farmlands; where water and electricity can be sporadic in the cities and unknown in the villages, where corruption and violence are ever possible tensions. The book creates this edgy tension as Tambudzai herself edges towards a breakdown. Yet she, and all the women in the book, keep fighting to survive. Readers (including myself) who loved Dangarembga's debut classic Nervous Conditions will be glad to see the return of Tambu and her cousin Nyasha, two women who seek very different futures both for themselves and their country.
Though Tambu is an anti-hero, I really enjoyed this novel, which is honest in its depictions of both wealth and poverty, female ambition and competition, tradition and modernity. It is also honest about the mental illness these tensions produce. Technically it is the third in a trilogy, which began with the wonderful Nervous Conditions, continues with The Book of Not (which I did not enjoy) and culminates in this book. This is a multi-layered story which tackles many issues, never losing sight of the human beings caught up in a history they did not make, and a future they need to struggle for.
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes