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avalinahsbooks's review
2.0
EDIT: some people complain that you're not supposed to bitch about spelling and grammar mistakes in a review copy (especially an ARC). That is fair. I just want to point out that this book was published in 2014 and I was offered it in the end of 2016. That seems like enough time to fix the spelling and finish the book properly.
So... Bad review coming up. But stay tuned, because it includes the most ridiculous editing bloopers I've ever seen yet. I apologize to the writer and the editor in advance, but if you don't do your job right, you have brought this on yourselves. That goes more for the editor and publisher.
This review has been sort of a dilemma for quite a while. Particularly because it seems like the first half and the second half were written by completely different people. Up to maybe 50-60%, the book was an editorial mess with no less writing bloopers as editing ones, but after half of it (I'm patient, right?) it finally became alright. The funny thing is that the editor says "Not that it needed any editing" on her Goodreads review. Sigh...
In my opinion, the book would benefit a great deal if the first half were pretty much removed completely. I'm also surprised to see such a poorly edited book by Crooked Cat Publishing, because the last book I read by them ([b:Isle of Larus|18305157|Isle of Larus|Kathy Sharp|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1376127055s/18305157.jpg|25797397]) was purely delightful.
As it's a review edition from NetGalley, I prefer to keep my negative thoughts to myself, (...mostly), but I will let you form your own opinion about it. Simple - I am presenting a list of all the editing and writing fails. Best to let you judge for yourselves.
#EditingFails blooper list:
- my favorite one so far is when the main character mentions thinking of "Christmas back home in England" and describes temperature in degrees F on the same page. How would an English person even understand F? That is the biggest editing fail I've seen in my life. "Not that it needed much editing", Ms Editor, only means that you must've been driving, eating and also doing your mascara while editing this. I'm sorry, no offence - but I can't respect this. And for those who say that maybe F is used in Nigeria, I can retort that a newcomer will stick to their own tradition for years before even starting to understand the new system.
- there's also a scene repeated twice in the same page. Clearly meant to be taken out the first time because the characters don't even react to it until it's repeated. It's also one character's actions so there's no way they could just ignore it. No need to be edited either, as I can gather. How's that mascara sandwich?
- in the beginning of the book the man is described as a selfish lover, who only climbs on his wife and turns around and sleeps when he's done. A third of the book in, I quote: "he was always a selfless lover: considerate and patient, constantly asking what I liked and desired." So... ?????? What..? Now I can't say if that's poor editing, poor writing, or both.
- I don't know if I should even mention punctuation? It bothered me a lot though. Or the fact that character names are mixed up sometimes? I do realize it's a review copy, maybe an advance one, but who in their right mind would put a book of THIS quality to their blogger reviewers? Do you really want their honest opinion? Cause this is what you'll get. Don't blame me.
Moving on to...
#WritingFails blooper list:
- when the characters first arrive in Africa, we are told about bombing in their village, lots of dead villagers and broken homes, basically decimated, but this event is never discussed again. Surely, such a major event as mass massacre in the characters' home area should be returned to..? Instead, we just hear about their home help and the heat. What's worse, straight after seeing all the dead bodies, all the main character can be freaked out about is the dirtiness of a rural bathroom, in which she cries because she "can't go in one like that". Really..?
- The book is pretty easy to read, to be honest, but it reads like an email from a friend (I'm mostly referring to the first part). That would be fine if it was an email or was introduced as an epistolary novel or at least a diary, but it's not. It's a normal, typical first person fiction book. And books, my friends, are NOT written like that. This is why we need editing and publishing supervision.
- the author tries to write in the first person as a woman. He fails entirely for the first half. Then it gets better. But maybe I just got used to the characters, who knows.
- There's no discernible storyline before you hit half the book. There's not even mention of the great big war going on there. Like I said, the book would benefit if only the second half stayed. Struggling for half the book is hardly going to entice your readers to keep going.
That said, of course there were good parts. Some of them include:
- Igbo myths and stories
- Explaining the Igbo religion
- Emotional involvement in the end of the second half
- More about the war by the end
But this is hardly enough to save the book. Crooked Cat, you can still save this project. Take it off and edit it, for god's sake. Otherwise we'll just have a lot of trees murdered for absolutely no reason.
I am disappointed, thinking that this will probably be my last review of the year.
So... Bad review coming up. But stay tuned, because it includes the most ridiculous editing bloopers I've ever seen yet. I apologize to the writer and the editor in advance, but if you don't do your job right, you have brought this on yourselves. That goes more for the editor and publisher.
This review has been sort of a dilemma for quite a while. Particularly because it seems like the first half and the second half were written by completely different people. Up to maybe 50-60%, the book was an editorial mess with no less writing bloopers as editing ones, but after half of it (I'm patient, right?) it finally became alright. The funny thing is that the editor says "Not that it needed any editing" on her Goodreads review. Sigh...
In my opinion, the book would benefit a great deal if the first half were pretty much removed completely. I'm also surprised to see such a poorly edited book by Crooked Cat Publishing, because the last book I read by them ([b:Isle of Larus|18305157|Isle of Larus|Kathy Sharp|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1376127055s/18305157.jpg|25797397]) was purely delightful.
As it's a review edition from NetGalley, I prefer to keep my negative thoughts to myself, (...mostly), but I will let you form your own opinion about it. Simple - I am presenting a list of all the editing and writing fails. Best to let you judge for yourselves.
#EditingFails blooper list:
- my favorite one so far is when the main character mentions thinking of "Christmas back home in England" and describes temperature in degrees F on the same page. How would an English person even understand F? That is the biggest editing fail I've seen in my life. "Not that it needed much editing", Ms Editor, only means that you must've been driving, eating and also doing your mascara while editing this. I'm sorry, no offence - but I can't respect this. And for those who say that maybe F is used in Nigeria, I can retort that a newcomer will stick to their own tradition for years before even starting to understand the new system.
- there's also a scene repeated twice in the same page. Clearly meant to be taken out the first time because the characters don't even react to it until it's repeated. It's also one character's actions so there's no way they could just ignore it. No need to be edited either, as I can gather. How's that mascara sandwich?
- in the beginning of the book the man is described as a selfish lover, who only climbs on his wife and turns around and sleeps when he's done. A third of the book in, I quote: "he was always a selfless lover: considerate and patient, constantly asking what I liked and desired." So... ?????? What..? Now I can't say if that's poor editing, poor writing, or both.
- I don't know if I should even mention punctuation? It bothered me a lot though. Or the fact that character names are mixed up sometimes? I do realize it's a review copy, maybe an advance one, but who in their right mind would put a book of THIS quality to their blogger reviewers? Do you really want their honest opinion? Cause this is what you'll get. Don't blame me.
Moving on to...
#WritingFails blooper list:
- when the characters first arrive in Africa, we are told about bombing in their village, lots of dead villagers and broken homes, basically decimated, but this event is never discussed again. Surely, such a major event as mass massacre in the characters' home area should be returned to..? Instead, we just hear about their home help and the heat. What's worse, straight after seeing all the dead bodies, all the main character can be freaked out about is the dirtiness of a rural bathroom, in which she cries because she "can't go in one like that". Really..?
- The book is pretty easy to read, to be honest, but it reads like an email from a friend (I'm mostly referring to the first part). That would be fine if it was an email or was introduced as an epistolary novel or at least a diary, but it's not. It's a normal, typical first person fiction book. And books, my friends, are NOT written like that. This is why we need editing and publishing supervision.
- the author tries to write in the first person as a woman. He fails entirely for the first half. Then it gets better. But maybe I just got used to the characters, who knows.
- There's no discernible storyline before you hit half the book. There's not even mention of the great big war going on there. Like I said, the book would benefit if only the second half stayed. Struggling for half the book is hardly going to entice your readers to keep going.
That said, of course there were good parts. Some of them include:
- Igbo myths and stories
- Explaining the Igbo religion
- Emotional involvement in the end of the second half
- More about the war by the end
But this is hardly enough to save the book. Crooked Cat, you can still save this project. Take it off and edit it, for god's sake. Otherwise we'll just have a lot of trees murdered for absolutely no reason.
I am disappointed, thinking that this will probably be my last review of the year.
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