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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
emotional
slow-paced
I received a copy of this book as an ARC from NetGalley.
Angel of Greenwood is a beautiful book. I fell in love with Angel and Isaiah and the way they fell for each other. To write something so idyllic and pure in the shadow of such looming destruction is a harsh contrast, but somehow it works. I definitely recommend this for anyone to read, and to use as a jumping-off point to learn more about the often overlooked history of the Tulsa massacre.
Angel of Greenwood is a beautiful book. I fell in love with Angel and Isaiah and the way they fell for each other. To write something so idyllic and pure in the shadow of such looming destruction is a harsh contrast, but somehow it works. I definitely recommend this for anyone to read, and to use as a jumping-off point to learn more about the often overlooked history of the Tulsa massacre.
Better than I thought, but nothing groundbreaking.
I think this book suffered from my expectation. 90% of the book, we are meeting Isaiah, Angel, & the people they interact with pre-massacre. When it ended I was just left wanting more. A good story, but not the one I was expecting.
This historical fiction is an interesting way to learn more about the Greenwood Massacre, through the lives of everyday residents. The author does a good job of introducing us to a variety characters and making us care about those who lived in Greenwood before it was burned. She also uses her characters in interesting ways to help her readers learn more about the opposing philosophies of W.E.B. Du Bois & Booker T. Washington. I appreciate the list of topics and sources at the end of the book.
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A lovely story that looks at the events in Tulsa in 1921 through the eyes of two young people. Pink has a lyrical hand and effectively uses 1920s Tulsa to build out her story.
I was happy that the book took the time to create a life and relationship before the massacre without the foreshadowing completely dominating. I was disappointed that the female lead and titular “Angel” was uninteresting overall. She was a girl convinced that she was “born to help” and has dedicated her life to doing just that. Generous and even tempered her only flaw is idolizing a too naive Booker T Washington. I wish she had been given more complexity and dimension.
Meanwhile, her Romeo counterpart—Isaiah—is her childhood bully who is changed simply by falling in love with her, and by being more mature by having already moved from Washington to Debois. One of the harshest rebukes comes when the bullies but newly courted Angel lashes out at Isaiah and is then corrected so harshly by a teacher that she cries. While the insult she used was severe it was beyond frustrating to me to see a teacher so ready to label Isaiah “good” without any sort of understanding of how he had treated Angel.
All of this quickly becomes quibble when the story reaches its heart wrenching climax. That said, the story and characters always seemed to take the back seat to the message of the book: that we, like Isaiah, must mature past Washington to the more realistic Debois.
Meanwhile, her Romeo counterpart—Isaiah—is her childhood bully who is changed simply by falling in love with her, and by being more mature by having already moved from Washington to Debois. One of the harshest rebukes comes when the bullies but newly courted Angel lashes out at Isaiah and is then corrected so harshly by a teacher that she cries. While the insult she used was severe it was beyond frustrating to me to see a teacher so ready to label Isaiah “good” without any sort of understanding of how he had treated Angel.
All of this quickly becomes quibble when the story reaches its heart wrenching climax. That said, the story and characters always seemed to take the back seat to the message of the book: that we, like Isaiah, must mature past Washington to the more realistic Debois.
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism