Reviews tagging 'Chronic illness'

Maame by Jessica George

65 reviews

sgrizzle's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

5.0

“I ask if you think you’re well-loved because it’s easy to conflate being well-liked with being well-loved. There’s often a misconception that to be well-loved, the love has to come from multiple sources, when truthfully, one or two people can love you with the strength of ten. Do you have people in your life who love you with the strength of many?”

I was thrilled to get an eARC of Maame from the publishers and Netgalley, and truly enjoyed reading this coming of age story. Maddie, a 25 year old British-Ghanaian woman, deals with family issues, grief, jobs, creativity, friendships, dating, and mental health, and not all well (mostly not). What really leapt out to me here was the strong characterization. By the end of the first chapter, you KNOW clearly who Maddie is. Her voice, and those of the secondary characters, especially her mother, are vibrant. It definitely deals with heavy topics in an intimate and careful way, and her moments of bravery felt really earned. To hear that this is Jessica George’s debut is exciting because she’s got a bright future in storytelling!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death of parent

whatmadsreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment

Moderate: Cursing

Minor: Drug use, Infidelity, and Alcohol

jenmcreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.5

This book was fantastic (and the audio is excellently narrated)! I went in fairly blind and ended up listening to the whole audiobook in one day. Maddie is such a well written character, and manages to balance her anxieties, her naivete, and her intelligence so realistically. I loved the ruminations on grief, challenging family dynamics, parentification, delayed adulthood, and modern dating, among other themes. This one is sticking in my mind for sure. I look forward to reading more from Jessica George I hope!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Colonisation

Minor: Biphobia and Sexual content

internationalreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment