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laurentastic's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
lasignorasgf's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
magsmybags's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
tjwallace04's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"Krik? Krak!" is a stunning collection of short stories about the Haitian experience. The majority of the stories are set in Haiti, although a few feature Haitian immigrants in the United States. Several of the stories are lightly connected. Together, they paint a compelling picture of the difficulties of life in Haiti in the 1980s under the leadership of dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier and the viciousness of the Tonton Macoute, the secret police, as well as the immigrant experience.
Some of my favorite stories were:
"Children of the Sea," a heartbreaking story about a young couple separated because the man has to escape the Tonton Macoute with other refugess on a boat, trying to make it to America.
"A Wall of Fire Rising," about the struggles of an impoverished Haitian family and a father who dreams of a different life.
"Between the Pool and the Gardenias," a dark and dreamlike story about a maid who finds an abandoned baby in the streets of Port-au-Prince and brings her back to her room at her employer's house
"Caroline's Wedding," the longest story in the collection, a wonderful, realistic narrative about a Haitian family living in New York and the younger daughter's planned marriage to a non-Haitian. It looks with humor and heart at the differences between generations and the changing attitudes of the Americanized daughters.
This is a slim volume. I would have loved more. Danticat writes with precision and power. This book is raw and poetic and subtle and basically all the things I love in writing. I would recommend this collection to anyone who loves literary fiction, learning about other cultures and histories, and taut, masterful short stories.
Some of my favorite stories were:
"Children of the Sea," a heartbreaking story about a young couple separated because the man has to escape the Tonton Macoute with other refugess on a boat, trying to make it to America.
"A Wall of Fire Rising," about the struggles of an impoverished Haitian family and a father who dreams of a different life.
"Between the Pool and the Gardenias," a dark and dreamlike story about a maid who finds an abandoned baby in the streets of Port-au-Prince and brings her back to her room at her employer's house
"Caroline's Wedding," the longest story in the collection, a wonderful, realistic narrative about a Haitian family living in New York and the younger daughter's planned marriage to a non-Haitian. It looks with humor and heart at the differences between generations and the changing attitudes of the Americanized daughters.
This is a slim volume. I would have loved more. Danticat writes with precision and power. This book is raw and poetic and subtle and basically all the things I love in writing. I would recommend this collection to anyone who loves literary fiction, learning about other cultures and histories, and taut, masterful short stories.
gaymoonreader's review against another edition
4.0
(4.5)
This is such a beautifully haunting collection of stories, and I really loved this. The writing was captivatingly beautiful and the stories were absolutely heartbreaking. These are set during a few different time periods in Haiti's history, but they are mostly centered around a time when a regime was in power that was characterized by violence and death as the tyrant was estimated to have killed around 60,000 Haitians. This is an incredible collection because it is born out of that time and does show some of the horrors of the time period while also managing to show a little bit of light in this dark period in history. I just really recommend this because it is just so good.
This is such a beautifully haunting collection of stories, and I really loved this. The writing was captivatingly beautiful and the stories were absolutely heartbreaking. These are set during a few different time periods in Haiti's history, but they are mostly centered around a time when a regime was in power that was characterized by violence and death as the tyrant was estimated to have killed around 60,000 Haitians. This is an incredible collection because it is born out of that time and does show some of the horrors of the time period while also managing to show a little bit of light in this dark period in history. I just really recommend this because it is just so good.
ra_cunigan's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual violence, War, and Gun violence
plantingneurons's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0