Reviews tagging 'Death'

Dear Senthuran: A Black Spirit Memoir by Akwaeke Emezi

17 reviews

karingforbooks's review

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informative slow-paced

2.5

I’m sure this resonates for others, but it’s not for me. Not least because the extensive discussion of suicide and self harm was triggering for me, so go into this having read content and trigger warnings. 
Otherwise I can’t tell if it’s just that I’m uncomfortable with someone being so confident or if I genuinely think they’re delusional in a harmless way. But none of it hit with me and I didn’t enjoy the writing style either. 

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mscalls's review

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challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

3.5

Powerful. 

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sofipitch's review

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dark emotional reflective slow-paced

4.75

Once again Emezi is the most talented contemporary writer. Their story and experience is one of impressive resilience. They also seen to have an extremely strong sense of self and self worth which I covet. Reading this book could not have happened at a better time, while it was difficult in some places the wisdom Emezi emparted was extremely helpful as well as their belief in working for the future you want

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imrereads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.5

I don't know where to begin with such a powerful memoir. Author memoirs are one of my favourite types of books, but I don't think I've ever read a memoir quite like this. It felt groundbreaking. Word view shifting. Oh so intimate. I won't ever forget this. 

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solenodon's review against another edition

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challenging emotional slow-paced

5.0


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hailskp's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

Breathtaking! A book everyone should read. It’s a beautiful, evocative, tense and wild expression of embodiment, what it means to be alive, and in a liminal space. I was in awe and uncomfortable and confronted with my own body. This is a classic which I know is not the authors intention, instead it is to find the power of spirit, to accept our death, our life and be in our truest essence. 

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hogsandwich's review

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challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

4.5

Theyre definitely a genius. Theyre also, I suspect, very difficult to be around.

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ominous_teapot's review

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challenging informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0


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laurenleigh's review

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.5

This memoir by Awaeke Emezi is written in letters, as they explore their gender identity, their romantic and sexual partnerships, their  life as an author, and their multiplicity. The epistolary format invites the reader into an intimate space, at times voyeuristic when Emezi gets into some intense detail. Some of these details, mainly relating to suicide and gore, were hard for me to read. I am a strict completionist, but even I had to give up on the titular “Dear Senthuran” letter, which is also rightly titled “Gore.” But I understand, at least to some degree, why it’s important for Emezi to push boundaries. Their life, their embodiment in human form, and in turn, their writing, is all so raw. It’s bursting at the seams with life and intensity. I highly recommend their debut novel, Freshwater, and I especially suggest reading that before this memoir, so you have an understanding of Emezi’s multiplicity and Igbo ontology. It’s all so fascinating to me, and their work is like nothing else I’ve ever read.

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ellekhupe's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.25


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