Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.24 AVERAGE
4.24 AVERAGE
fast-paced
Wonderful book, but didn’t consistently keep my interest. So well done, remained faithful to The Great Gatsby while telling the story from an entirely different—and arguably more important—angle. Loved it.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Excellent account of historical facts.
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is an African-American Great Gatsby retelling that I think would have worked better as a book inspired by The Great Gatsby. There are two main plot lines in this book, which I will refer to as the Great Gatsby plot and the lawsuit plot. These plots are very, very slightly related and don’t actually intertwine much.
I actually really liked the lawsuit plotline. I thought that the discussion of the law around the time and the views of the people in the community were really interesting. I don’t know much about Sugar Hill(the place this book took place), but I thought that it was an interesting place. It also seemed like the author researched for this portion of the novel, which I think is why it was so interesting to me. Reading the differing perspectives was also interesting. (I use interesting a lot but I really did enjoy reading this plotline because it made me think and learn about things that I didn’t know before).
On the other hand, I really didn’t like the Great Gatsby plotline. I thought that it was a very close rendition of the original Great Gatsby plotline, which I thought did a disservice to the book. The lawsuit plotline was more original, though still based on something, but the Great Gatsby plotline was a regurgitation. It made me sad because I thought that the rest of the book was super interesting and thought-provoking. I will say that I didn’t enjoy The Great Gatsby, the book, that much so maybe this book just wasn’t for me but it fell much flatter than the lawsuit plotline.
Another thing that I didn’t super enjoy was some of the sexual scenes that were in this book. They seemed to come out of nowhere and didn’t seem to have a real impact on the book. I think they could have been left out and the story would have been the same. It just didn’t seem to match the vibe of the book in my opinion.
The final thing is that this book was really easy to get through. The chapters are super short and the sentences aren’t super complex. The overall crafting of the novel is done well in my opinion.
I think that people who loved The Great Gatsby, who like to learn about African American history, and like messy people, will like this book. Since I only really liked learning about African American history, this book really wasn’t for me.
I actually really liked the lawsuit plotline. I thought that the discussion of the law around the time and the views of the people in the community were really interesting. I don’t know much about Sugar Hill(the place this book took place), but I thought that it was an interesting place. It also seemed like the author researched for this portion of the novel, which I think is why it was so interesting to me. Reading the differing perspectives was also interesting. (I use interesting a lot but I really did enjoy reading this plotline because it made me think and learn about things that I didn’t know before).
On the other hand, I really didn’t like the Great Gatsby plotline. I thought that it was a very close rendition of the original Great Gatsby plotline, which I thought did a disservice to the book. The lawsuit plotline was more original, though still based on something, but the Great Gatsby plotline was a regurgitation. It made me sad because I thought that the rest of the book was super interesting and thought-provoking. I will say that I didn’t enjoy The Great Gatsby, the book, that much so maybe this book just wasn’t for me but it fell much flatter than the lawsuit plotline.
Another thing that I didn’t super enjoy was some of the sexual scenes that were in this book. They seemed to come out of nowhere and didn’t seem to have a real impact on the book. I think they could have been left out and the story would have been the same. It just didn’t seem to match the vibe of the book in my opinion.
The final thing is that this book was really easy to get through. The chapters are super short and the sentences aren’t super complex. The overall crafting of the novel is done well in my opinion.
I think that people who loved The Great Gatsby, who like to learn about African American history, and like messy people, will like this book. Since I only really liked learning about African American history, this book really wasn’t for me.
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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:
N/A
Another amazing book club pick by @vintageandblackbookclub‼️
Ya’ll this book was so good I’ve never read The Great Gatsby so I honestly didn’t know what to expect with this retelling. But the author overly delivered with this one. She gave us a history lesson mixed with hella drama, a pinch of romance, some betrayal and a hint of mystery/suspense.
Idk about anyone else but those first couple chapters had me hooked. Seeing Charlie’s encounter in a new environment (Sugar Hill) surrounded by Black wealth and Black elites whose names held weight in their community was so satisfying. Imagine living in the Deep South where racism and systemic oppression is prevalent and then going somewhere where Black people act as though these things are nonexistent I’d probably be mind blown to. It reminds me of Claude’s reaction in the movie Life after he’d been imprisoned so long and got to drive into town with the warden.
I loved how Lurie gave each character a voice and personality of their own. Charlie was lovable, full of curiosity and questioned everything. Terrance was a smart mouth, arrogant jack ass who felt everyone was beneath him. His character got under my skin. James “Reaper” Mann was a mystery of his own on a quest to find his true love but who was he really? Margie lived in a world of her own and whoever she imagined herself as is who she became when she moved to Sugar Hill. Still can’t believe she curved that man for Terrance. The author also gave us great supporting characters like Anna and Louise along with star appearances from Lena Horne and Hattie McDaniel.
Overall, The Great Mann was amazing. For Lurie to take 3 unknown Black characters humanize them and build a wholesome story around them was so well done. Yes this book may have a lot of similarities to The Great Gatsby but I truly feel the author made it her own by giving readers the Black perspective. With themes of friendship, family, classism, racial covenants, Black wealth and identity, this book is rich in historical detail and perfectly captures the backdrop of post-Civil War America.
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes