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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I have not been in the groove for reading short stories in a very long time and I was unaware that these were short stories until after reading further. As a short story collection, this has to be the best I read. Everything is here and belongs here, nothing really is a throw-away, even though as is the case with collections, we don’t always resonate with certain tales the same way we do with others. This book made me look up information about Haitian history in the 20th century, made me actually buy more books by Dandicat--it was that good.
There is a poetry in these stories, but it seems organic like Dandicat doesn’t really have to try and that is very hard to describe. Her stories are about journeys and they do focus on quite frequently on mother/child relationships and how those bonds play. In the “Missing Peace,” one of the characters proclaims that a girl “becomes a woman when she loses her mother,” and the stories play on this idea of what it means to grow up with or without a mother or a parental figure around. Dandicat also focuses on these in-between spaces, these watery boundaries where people are floating between life and death, waking and sleep, two countries, two names, two lives. It was honestly so well done. The first story, “Children of the Sea” was horrifying and so vivid, but the way Dandicat shifted perspective felt, once again, so authentic--not gimmicky, not an excuse to deviate from the narrative when she had written herself into some sort of hole. She showed so much control in all of these. I also lovedthe story “Caroline’s Wedding,” and the whole discussion about the sacrifices made for a piece of paper--an American passport. It captures the struggles of immigration so succinctly and poignantly.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Definitely recommend this collection of stories for anyone who likes Junot Diaz.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
the stories in this book really make you appreciate the things you take for granted. these are the stories of a community in strife but still finding a voice to speak their truths. often heartbreaking but never without hope
https://www.instagram.com/p/BjR8ORhlyHi/?taken-by=reggiereads
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed this collection of short stories quite a bit. I started reading it a few years ago and put it down for any number of reasons but returned to it this month. It was well worth getting back into. Some of the stories that really struck me were "Caroline's Wedding", "New York Day Women", and "Seeing Things Simply". I liked the tone of the stories, the plain language used to bring characters to life. I especially loved Caroline and Gracina's mother in "Caroline's Wedding". She felt so real, so full of contradictions, so warm and loving, so cold and by-the-book, old world. Krik? Krak! is definitely worth picking up and savoring the stories.
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
