Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
5/10 - Didn’t particularly like or dislike. Mixed or no real interest.
At first I found We Need New Names challenging. I persisted and ignored the nightmares that the story generated. I'm glad I did because this is an excellent book. The story line is clear and NoViolet Bulawayo's articulate writing paints the pictures. I recognise the Zimbabwe she is writing about and it breaks my heart. From the minutiae to the broad, global scene, there is a resonance any immigrant - black or white - can identify with.
I thought it was a difficult book to read - it was disjointed at several points and it was hard to tell what Darling was thinking/talking about.
I really liked the first half of the story (4 stars)! The second half was much weaker (2 stars).
Like reading two books in one. The first part is the story of ten-year-old Darling and her friends - children who survive and play in the shantytowns of Zimbabwe. The second part is Darling's story of attempting to assimilate (and stay, despite being there illegally) in the U.S. It felt a little more like a series of short stories, occasionally with too much crammed into them, to me than one cohesive narrative, but I liked Darling's "voice" very much.
So many interesting things in this book. Definitely more engaged in the second half, so stick with it if you struggle in the beginning. This is a book I can't wait to discuss with my book club! I'm not sure if it was an enjoyable read, but it was thought provoking, interesting, unique, and I'm glad I read it.
I can see why this was shortlisted for the Booker, and I can see why it didn't win. It's beautiful, cruel and unsentimental, but with some inexplicable and major inconsistencies. It may not be perfect, but sections of it are downright chilling--especially the chapter entitled "How They Lived." The experience of transplantation and disorientation is so strongly evoked. Do read it.
WE NEED NEW NAMES by NoViolet Bulawayo, set in Zimbabwe and America, gives a divided look at the immigrant experience. While I admit I don’t know a lot about the Zimbabwean struggle for independence and its aftermath, I have read a number of fictional accounts of the devastation of colonialism and the struggle for autonomy in African nations. This one is unique in the way it draws the reader in through the lives of impoverished children who live in an ironically named shantytown called Paradise.
The protagonist, Darling, spends her days roaming with her friends—stealing fruit and playing the games they’ve invented. Her grandmother thinks her friends are a bad influence but cannot really keep Darling in line. Her mother has gone to the border to sell and her father hasn’t been heard from since he left for South Africa.
Despite their bleak existence and their sharp insights, the children retain some innocence. As underfed children their twin preoccupations are food and play. When things were more stable, the children went to school and their knowledge of geography and politics probably rivals that of children who have attended school continuously. While some think of going to neighboring countries like South Africa and Botswana, Darling’s dream is to go to America where her aunt Fostalina lives.
In this searing account of the dilemmas that surround the immigrant experience, Darling doesn’t want to stay in her homeland under difficult conditions but feels punished for leaving and anger burns within her when she realizes that she may not be able achieve the grand dreams she had for her life in America.
You can read the rest of my review on my booksploitation book blog.
The protagonist, Darling, spends her days roaming with her friends—stealing fruit and playing the games they’ve invented. Her grandmother thinks her friends are a bad influence but cannot really keep Darling in line. Her mother has gone to the border to sell and her father hasn’t been heard from since he left for South Africa.
Despite their bleak existence and their sharp insights, the children retain some innocence. As underfed children their twin preoccupations are food and play. When things were more stable, the children went to school and their knowledge of geography and politics probably rivals that of children who have attended school continuously. While some think of going to neighboring countries like South Africa and Botswana, Darling’s dream is to go to America where her aunt Fostalina lives.
In this searing account of the dilemmas that surround the immigrant experience, Darling doesn’t want to stay in her homeland under difficult conditions but feels punished for leaving and anger burns within her when she realizes that she may not be able achieve the grand dreams she had for her life in America.
You can read the rest of my review on my booksploitation book blog.
Excellent first novel about Darling's immigration from Zimbabwe as a child to Detroit.