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amberinbookland's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Mental illness, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
emilyhawk's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
4.0
Gyasi's second novel is not as gripping as Homegoing, but that's not a fair metric because in my opinion, Homegoing is about as close to perfection as a novel could be. This book is excellent and I recommend it to anyone, but particularly those wanting to think through faith, family, and belonging. I am continually amazed by Gyasi's ability to crate surprising, complex characters not typically represented in literature -- a first-gen, formerly Southern evangelical, Black woman in STEM? Fascinating to learn about the world through Gifty's lens. Yet even though I don't share a lot of identity markers with Gifty, her story gave me to much to think about. That's the beauty of Gyasi's storytelling: she tells specific stories with universal truths about human nature embedded within. This book cemented Gyasi's place as one of my favorite contemporary authors, and I can't wait for her next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Drug use, Addiction, and Grief
Moderate: Religious bigotry and Racism
kikiwi's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Child death, and Emotional abuse
whatannikareads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
i know it's probably unfair to compare this book to homegoing, but regardless it's hard to do anyway considering how different the writing style was in this book compared to it. i didn't feel really connected to the character, and while the religious aspect of it i couldn't relate to or even sympathize with, the scientific part i also felt a bit detached to. i liked some aspects of it, like the relationship with her mother and mostly with Nana, but i felt like i kept reading, searching for something to give it that umph and it was just flat the whole time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Mental illness
katie_ponderingthepages's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
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? Yes
5.0
This book gets the easiest 5 stars I’ve given for a long time. After loving Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi I was so excited to be approved for an advanced copy of her newest book Transcendent Kingdom.
Gifty was brought up an Evangelical Christian in Alabama with her Ghanian family, her father left them and returned to Ghana, her brother dies of an overdose and her mother enters a crippling depression. At 11 years old she is sent to Ghana while her mother recovers. Now a PhD student studying neuroscience, specifically addiction, she is trying to understand why her brother was taken and why her mother is trapped in depression again. She explores her faith as well as her neuroscience knowledge whilst recalling her past, trying to find the answer within God and/or science will make everything better.
The writing in this is so clever, it’s layered, it’s informative and offers insight and understanding to a number of issues. I felt as the reader that I was following Gifty’s trail of thought as she recalled events from the past and weighed up why God and her pastor hadn’t helped and why science had failed to provide answers.
Gifty’s need to fix her family is so despairingly strong, that it overtakes her life. She can’t open up to friends or form relationships and as you read her journey, trying to piece everything together for everyone else, you become more and more aware that Gifty herself is broken and struggling. When I read the following ‘“No I’m not ok”, I said, and I wondered when the last time I’d said that was. Had I ever said it, even to God?’ I burst into tears for this incredibly kind and vulnerable character.
I have no criticism whatsoever. This book is phenomenal.
Thank you to @netgalley and @penguinukbooks for the pleasure of reading this before it’s 4th March publication date
Gifty was brought up an Evangelical Christian in Alabama with her Ghanian family, her father left them and returned to Ghana, her brother dies of an overdose and her mother enters a crippling depression. At 11 years old she is sent to Ghana while her mother recovers. Now a PhD student studying neuroscience, specifically addiction, she is trying to understand why her brother was taken and why her mother is trapped in depression again. She explores her faith as well as her neuroscience knowledge whilst recalling her past, trying to find the answer within God and/or science will make everything better.
The writing in this is so clever, it’s layered, it’s informative and offers insight and understanding to a number of issues. I felt as the reader that I was following Gifty’s trail of thought as she recalled events from the past and weighed up why God and her pastor hadn’t helped and why science had failed to provide answers.
Gifty’s need to fix her family is so despairingly strong, that it overtakes her life. She can’t open up to friends or form relationships and as you read her journey, trying to piece everything together for everyone else, you become more and more aware that Gifty herself is broken and struggling. When I read the following ‘“No I’m not ok”, I said, and I wondered when the last time I’d said that was. Had I ever said it, even to God?’ I burst into tears for this incredibly kind and vulnerable character.
I have no criticism whatsoever. This book is phenomenal.
Thank you to @netgalley and @penguinukbooks for the pleasure of reading this before it’s 4th March publication date
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Mental illness
Moderate: Medical content, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Physical abuse
gdemartino's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
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