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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Yes
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
This book was not for me - so I would take this review with a grain of salt.
When We Were Birds is a baffling story to me. I do not really know what the plot was (I'll summarize what I gathered next) - I don't know or understand the dual narratives, the main characters, who they are (what they even look like), and what is driving them. There are bits and pieces yes, in answers to those queries, but the writing style is such that you don't get a complete picture of them. There's very little dialogue or interaction, and often the description (when it is there) is more of the environment than of the people. There are clearly stakes, emotions, and stresses the characters are working through, but again, how it all fits together in a cohesive plot with well drawn characters is beyond me.
The two MCs are navigating significant transitions - all revolving around death. Darwin gets a new (potentially sketchy/criminal) job as a gravedigger or working at a cemetery (there are descriptions of office type work, getting office supplies, but also of being at the cemetery. There wasn't enough info for me to grasp what exactly this job was honestly). About a 1/3 of the way in, he begins to dream or see a woman, who is the other MC, Yejide. Darwin's focus for a lot of the first half of the book had nothing to do with her, but then suddenly it becomes a driving force for him, especially once they meet at the graveyard. His mother doesn't like him working at the graveyard, close to the dead, as it's against their religious beliefs, but he needs to make money to take care of her and himself. Then there's Yejide, whose emotionally distant mother dies, and she discovers she now has to ferry the dead to the other side through making sure they are content with burial type stuff. This isn't as involved or explicit as that description, I'm filling in blanks in my opinion. Her mother also has a lot more to say now that she's dead and Yejide's shocked by her own new "job" and navigating grief of her mother's death, plus dealing with other dead family or community members (this wasn't clear to me).
They meet and then they still don't really spend that much time together. Rarely talk that much. They are drawn together but given they are finally in the same space for any period of time for the first time about 2/3rds in, I don't get their relationship or connection apart from them saying "I dreamed of them and now they are here so fate or some such".
This isn't a love story. It's not a romance.
The writing at times can be descriptive, but not of the things that I think (personal opinion) are necessary to a story. What do people look like? To not describe people and then throw out an emotion - sad, scared, etc. - but have no description of how that shows up in their engagement doesn't make sense and it's really difficult to connect to the characters. For example - near the end, Yejide says she smells the mud or dirt on the boots of Darwin. But that's it - at that point, I don't know what Darwin is wearing, what his height is, I don't know ANYTHING about him but I do get a vivid description of mud on the boots. That's what I mean. Also - they have seen each other once maybe, and then when they are driving together a little later, she's now talking about how she can be herself around him, etc. She hasn't said more than 10 words to him? This is, I think, their second interaction. How is she at this point already? She literally says something about marrying him. It happens so fast. There are so many gaps!!!
Again - I should have DNFed this because it's not for me.
I think this feels a bit like a dream - because of the gaps, because of the lack of description of people - it doesn't flow or make sense but if you think about this as a dream, then I think you can immerse yourself in the vibes, in the cultural perspective (which is description, in terms of the village, the environment, etc.). There's also some deeper moments of insight/reflection about grief and death.
When We Were Birds is a baffling story to me. I do not really know what the plot was (I'll summarize what I gathered next) - I don't know or understand the dual narratives, the main characters, who they are (what they even look like), and what is driving them. There are bits and pieces yes, in answers to those queries, but the writing style is such that you don't get a complete picture of them. There's very little dialogue or interaction, and often the description (when it is there) is more of the environment than of the people. There are clearly stakes, emotions, and stresses the characters are working through, but again, how it all fits together in a cohesive plot with well drawn characters is beyond me.
The two MCs are navigating significant transitions - all revolving around death. Darwin gets a new (potentially sketchy/criminal) job as a gravedigger or working at a cemetery (there are descriptions of office type work, getting office supplies, but also of being at the cemetery. There wasn't enough info for me to grasp what exactly this job was honestly). About a 1/3 of the way in, he begins to dream or see a woman, who is the other MC, Yejide. Darwin's focus for a lot of the first half of the book had nothing to do with her, but then suddenly it becomes a driving force for him, especially once they meet at the graveyard. His mother doesn't like him working at the graveyard, close to the dead, as it's against their religious beliefs, but he needs to make money to take care of her and himself. Then there's Yejide, whose emotionally distant mother dies, and she discovers she now has to ferry the dead to the other side through making sure they are content with burial type stuff. This isn't as involved or explicit as that description, I'm filling in blanks in my opinion. Her mother also has a lot more to say now that she's dead and Yejide's shocked by her own new "job" and navigating grief of her mother's death, plus dealing with other dead family or community members (this wasn't clear to me).
They meet and then they still don't really spend that much time together. Rarely talk that much. They are drawn together but given they are finally in the same space for any period of time for the first time about 2/3rds in, I don't get their relationship or connection apart from them saying "I dreamed of them and now they are here so fate or some such".
This isn't a love story. It's not a romance.
The writing at times can be descriptive, but not of the things that I think (personal opinion) are necessary to a story. What do people look like? To not describe people and then throw out an emotion - sad, scared, etc. - but have no description of how that shows up in their engagement doesn't make sense and it's really difficult to connect to the characters. For example - near the end, Yejide says she smells the mud or dirt on the boots of Darwin. But that's it - at that point, I don't know what Darwin is wearing, what his height is, I don't know ANYTHING about him but I do get a vivid description of mud on the boots. That's what I mean. Also - they have seen each other once maybe, and then when they are driving together a little later, she's now talking about how she can be herself around him, etc. She hasn't said more than 10 words to him? This is, I think, their second interaction. How is she at this point already? She literally says something about marrying him. It happens so fast. There are so many gaps!!!
Again - I should have DNFed this because it's not for me.
I think this feels a bit like a dream - because of the gaps, because of the lack of description of people - it doesn't flow or make sense but if you think about this as a dream, then I think you can immerse yourself in the vibes, in the cultural perspective (which is description, in terms of the village, the environment, etc.). There's also some deeper moments of insight/reflection about grief and death.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not a romance, unclear about what I was supposed to take away. Loved the voices of the audiobook. Not enough was explained but also too much was explained? Lots of unanswered questions on my end
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
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
This book was really nicely written and an overall nice story but also pretty boring. I could’ve just stopped at reading the book jacket and still have known what happened in the book
adventurous
mysterious
fast-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