Reviews with content warning for Torture - Blonde Roots

Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Blonde Roots by Bernardine Evaristo

23 reviews

sydneybedell's review

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challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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franzi_'s review

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adventurous challenging dark reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

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Although this book was written well and full of description (which I usually love in books) it was a bit too gritty at times and as a person who reads for comfort it did not make me feel comfortable. I guess that is my own fault for reading a book about slavery and expecting them to miss out gruesome details.I’m probably being dramatic but I found it too much

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amberinbookland's review

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challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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andreiaoh's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

honestly I'd give this 3.75 but I'm not a fan of quarter stars so rounding down to 3.5.

I was slow to warm up to this book and it was not an easy read at all but incredibly powerful and Evaristo's writing was wonderful. I loved the mixed medium style of this novel from standard prose, to non-fiction-esque passages, posters, advertisements and diary entries and I think it definitely made this a little easier to digest, particularly around the half way point.

This novel was simultaneously exactly what I expected as well as took me off guard completely and it'll definitely be a story I'll be thinking about for a long time.

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misssophiereads's review against another edition

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5.0

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asourceoffiction's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative 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

Imagine if the Transatlantic slave trade was reversed? Imagine Africans the masters and Europeans their slaves... That's what Evaristo has done in this brilliant satire. She is a master of building worlds and developing character and this book is so clever. It's harrowing, poetic and even funny while so cleverly subverting everything about the slave trade. Doris is given the name Omorenomwara, and on the rare occasions her 'Europane' name is used, it is alien and hard to pronounce. Familiar place names are brilliantly given 'Aphrikan' iterations but the geography is the broadly the same.

While reading I found myself hoping and wishing that levels of empathy would be the same regardless of the skin colour of those suffering. But knowing how white privilege is still so disappointingly prevalent, this is such a brilliant way to challenge perceptions of race and culture. It was also interesting to see that those forced into slavery still largely come from the same area (Europa in this world is geographically below Aphrika), perhaps as an example of the ludicrous, arbitrary distinctions that were used to justify this abhorrent practice - that one group thought themselves superior simply because of their position on the planet.

This is not an easy read, but it is so clever and such an important satire that encourages a fresh look at the history of the slave trade.

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