Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Maame by Jessica George

356 reviews

teacupsandfirereads's review against another edition

hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

3.0

I'm on the fence if I loved this one. It told a realistic story, the responsibilities of caring for a sick parent and not getting to "grow  up" in time. I found the main character believable, but I struggled to connect with her. I found for broaching such a dense topic, this book just skimmed the surface level. I wanted more substance to it, and didn't feel I got what I wanted. Take my review with a grain of salt. It is still worth reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Mental illness, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, Racism, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Infidelity, Suicide, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

tkaryn's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

This book really did a lot for me, reading someone else's journey with loss, mental health and coming if age. Compelling story and realistic characters. The only thing that kept it from getting a higher score is that I have a hard time with stream of consciousness writing, so I really had to push myself to continue for that reason. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness and Death of parent

Minor: Suicide

emjay2021's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-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

Maddie lives in London. She is the 25 year old daughter of Ghanaian immigrants but is an odd mix of much older and much younger. On the one hand, her family has piled a lot of responsibilities on her that she shouldn’t have had to handle on her own, and on the other, her upbringing has left her too anxious and scared to take the risks involved in developing her own identity separate from her family.

There are a few things that make this book stand out from other coming of age novels. First of all, Maddie is very loveable despite being a frustrating character. I also appreciated the book’s perspectives on racism, grief, and familial/cultural expectations. The writing is simple and the plot pretty straightforward, but there are also bits that are really quite beautiful. I am glad I read it and would happily read another book by this author. I think Maame is quite autobiographical, and the author’s experiences will lead to some rich literature to explore in future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Death, Bullying, Sexual assault, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Death of parent, and Classism

jourdanicus's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

While not a perfect five-star read for me, this book still touched on a lot of my "catnip" topics and I really enjoyed it.

Maddie as a character is naive in a way that toed the line of believability for me sometimes, esp cially for a gen Z/millennial with the lived experience of being Black in a colonial country. However, the way the themes of racism, misogyny, and sexuality were included is perfect for readers who might be newer to those topics and interested in diversifying their reading.

I did find Maddie relatable in a lot of ways too. The characters and the story were sweet without being saccharine. The plot was a little slow to build, but the second half/third was worth it.

For better or worse, the real life experiences of the author really came through in the story, and I think this book is a well-executed answer to the prompt of "write what you know."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Death of parent

Moderate: Dementia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content

Minor: Medical content, Misogyny, Suicide, Drug use, Racism, Alcohol, Biphobia, and Eating disorder

mdavis26's review against another edition

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Abandonment, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Grief

nanirump's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Medical content, Sexual content, Drug use, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Death of parent

holy_moly_colee's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, and Panic attacks/disorders

wellreadmegs's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This was a beautiful and real coming-of-age story about grief. Maddie is so new at discovering herself and it's lovely to see things from her perspective. There's something so innocent about it all. But I also feel for her and how hard this world must be to navigate by yourself - without the help of friends or family. 

I read & listened along to the audiobook which were both great. Short chapters helped me get through the book quickly & especially enjoyed the Google searches Maddie had throughout the book. I thought the author did a really great job of tackling a lot of tough subjects and navigating them as a 25-year-old. Your 20s are messy & going through traumatic experiences doesn't help that. 

I absolutely HATED Maddie's mom. There was one chapter the author tried to redeem her and I have empathy but overall I don't think she changed much. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief

Minor: Suicide

theliteraryloot's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Racism, Death of parent, and Mental illness

Moderate: Sexual content

loesm's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Racism