Scan barcode
kristinrob's review against another edition
4.0
A story about race, war and love in post WWII Los Angeles.
babybearreads's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
At its core, Southland is an intimate portrait of a Los Angeles neighborhood and its people told through a murder mystery. It is non-romanticized, non-Hollywoodized, mainly non-white and non-wealthy -- a pretty stark departure from many LA-based stories and definitely the mainline history of the region. It takes place among the Japanese + Black community of the Crenshaw District in the middle 20th century, among characters discovering and rediscovering their own histories. Southland is a tender but unflinching story, with several voices and layers. It's got straightforward and sometimes clunky writing, but is ultimately a fantastic read that I would recommend to anyone living in, or interested in, LA.
--
"And she saw, like a ghost that hovered behind him, the texture and shape of his loss."
--
"And she saw, like a ghost that hovered behind him, the texture and shape of his loss."
noskills's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Have you heard the one about the Japanese and Black families in South Los Angeles during a historic uprising? Revoyr explodes this singular moment in the city’s history into an expansive, yet tightly-wound exploration of race, history, sociology, crime, mystery and family drama. Like other canon crime novels, the city looms large as an unspoken character. But Revoyr focuses on the residents and the effect of the city’s history on their relationships with each other, which is what differentiates this novel. An unforgettable masterpiece.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Police brutality, and Hate crime
Moderate: Murder, Violence, and Racism
imperfectcj's review
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The story is interesting, the themes are definitely timely, and I enjoyed reading another novel about Los Angeles, but the execution is a bit clumsy. The exposition is obvious and some of the characters not entirely believable, as though intentionally "too much" in order to make a point. The juxtaposition of violence and sex is also a little off-putting to me. Still, I liked this novel enough that I'd be interested in checking out Revoyr's later work.
ksparks's review against another edition
5.0
I am so impressed with this author. She brings the hidden history of this country to life. The hidden history of gays and lesbians, of Japanese-Americans, African-Americans,
And what is so amazing is that she tells a compelling story...while her novels are truly educational they succeed as fiction.This novel works on so many levels for me--intellectual, emotional, and spiritual. I found it very inspiring in all kinds of ways.
And what is so amazing is that she tells a compelling story...while her novels are truly educational they succeed as fiction.This novel works on so many levels for me--intellectual, emotional, and spiritual. I found it very inspiring in all kinds of ways.
finallyfinnian's review against another edition
5.0
After her grandfather's death, Jackie learns of an old mystery surrounding the murders of four young black males during the Watts riots of 1965. Alternating between the story of the search for the truth about the mystery and the story of the actual events of the 60's, told in the point of view of several different characters, this story is a rich and complex tale of racism, cruelty, poverty and Japanese internment camps. Revoyr tells a great story without getting too maudlin about an intense subject. There are a couple of dips into Steven Spielberg type emotional set ups, but all in all, the author allows the reader to just feel the shock and horror of the events because the events are, indeed, shocking and horrible, not because the reader is being manipulated to feel something. Excellent book and well worth a read.
acousticbanana's review
2.0
I thought this book had some interesting ideas, and I enjoyed the history in it, and the fact that the locations were all local to me. However, I found that I never connected very deeply with the characters, and I often confused them with each other. The dialogue and a lot of the writing was dull and clunky, although there were some good lines in there. I read this book for an English class, and I would not have picked it up on my own. There were some things I liked about it, but on the whole I would not recommend it.
carolinemeow's review
3.0
3.5
mehhh
lots of good stuff but i really don't like revoyr's writing style & i just couldn't get over it. third person omniscient can be done well, but switching right from one paragraph to the other is not good unless you're trying some weird postmodern experimental prose. also, way too much tell at times, not enough show. like she's got some great ideas, interesting plot and concepts and characters and an interesting story to tell, she's just...not actually that good at writing, needs to hone technique
also there was a serious lack of resolution that imo didn't really fit with the story.esp laura and jackie's relationship, which should have been concluded, and concluded EARLY—right before the climax at the latest like some stories can pull off leaving a bunch of loose ends hanging and not everything should be resolved all neatly, but...this just didn't do it
i love rebecca tho but too much tell not enough show she was just not fleshed out well
jackie is someone i can relate to in terms of "?????? wtf is my identity??? asianness????" but she irritated me sometimes as well, like it's not her fault that she's sheltered but damn she could stand to have some empathy for others??? i know she gets better by the end of the story but god she was just so annoying sometimes. also there were soo many blatant attempts to tug at the reader's heartstrings and i'm sure revoyr was writing from the heart and i could tell she really cared, but the transparency of it kinda took away from it
mehhh
lots of good stuff but i really don't like revoyr's writing style & i just couldn't get over it. third person omniscient can be done well, but switching right from one paragraph to the other is not good unless you're trying some weird postmodern experimental prose. also, way too much tell at times, not enough show. like she's got some great ideas, interesting plot and concepts and characters and an interesting story to tell, she's just...not actually that good at writing, needs to hone technique
also there was a serious lack of resolution that imo didn't really fit with the story.
i love rebecca tho but too much tell not enough show she was just not fleshed out well
jackie is someone i can relate to in terms of "?????? wtf is my identity??? asianness????" but she irritated me sometimes as well, like it's not her fault that she's sheltered but damn she could stand to have some empathy for others??? i know she gets better by the end of the story but god she was just so annoying sometimes. also there were soo many blatant attempts to tug at the reader's heartstrings and i'm sure revoyr was writing from the heart and i could tell she really cared, but the transparency of it kinda took away from it
jessicaesquire's review
4.0
3.5 stars.
This is actually my third Nina Revoyr novel though it's her best known. It's an ambitious and impressive book taking on the kind of subject you'd think there were piles of novels written about when actually there are very few. I'd highly recommend reading this in conjunction with a few other novels that take on the racial shifts of Los Angeles, THE SELLOUT by Paul Beatty and YOUR HOUSE WILL PAY by Steph Cha. All very different, but all considering similar themes.
In 1994, Jackie finds herself going down a rabbit hole after her grandfather dies. She discovers a horrible crime from his past that changed him forever. As Jackie learns more about what actually happened and who her grandfather was, we flash back through time to see more of these stories. Jackie is about to finish law school and start a prestigious job. Jackie's grandfather was the child of Japanese immigrants, who spent his teenage years in an internment camp followed by service in WWII, then ran a neighborhood store until the Watts riots. Jackie feels removed from her grandfather, from her Asian-American identity, and from her girlfriend Laura. But in her search to uncover the truth about who committed a terrible crime, she finds connection to her family, her community, and herself.
It's a well-written novel with complicated themes to explore. I have knocked off half a star for completely subjective reasons, I wanted more movement, quicker pacing, and sometimes felt like it was dragging. But this probably more of a me-problem than a this-book problem. I recommend coming into it knowing it will be take its time so you can relax and go along with it.
You don't find many novels about queer women of color who have fully realized lives, it's very refreshing to have Jackie around and with such a rich story.
This is actually my third Nina Revoyr novel though it's her best known. It's an ambitious and impressive book taking on the kind of subject you'd think there were piles of novels written about when actually there are very few. I'd highly recommend reading this in conjunction with a few other novels that take on the racial shifts of Los Angeles, THE SELLOUT by Paul Beatty and YOUR HOUSE WILL PAY by Steph Cha. All very different, but all considering similar themes.
In 1994, Jackie finds herself going down a rabbit hole after her grandfather dies. She discovers a horrible crime from his past that changed him forever. As Jackie learns more about what actually happened and who her grandfather was, we flash back through time to see more of these stories. Jackie is about to finish law school and start a prestigious job. Jackie's grandfather was the child of Japanese immigrants, who spent his teenage years in an internment camp followed by service in WWII, then ran a neighborhood store until the Watts riots. Jackie feels removed from her grandfather, from her Asian-American identity, and from her girlfriend Laura. But in her search to uncover the truth about who committed a terrible crime, she finds connection to her family, her community, and herself.
It's a well-written novel with complicated themes to explore. I have knocked off half a star for completely subjective reasons, I wanted more movement, quicker pacing, and sometimes felt like it was dragging. But this probably more of a me-problem than a this-book problem. I recommend coming into it knowing it will be take its time so you can relax and go along with it.
You don't find many novels about queer women of color who have fully realized lives, it's very refreshing to have Jackie around and with such a rich story.
More...