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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
challenging
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:
No
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-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:
Yes
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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:
No
I really enjoyed the way this book was written from the POV of Darling, telling her insightful story in Zimbabwe and through her immigrant experience in the US through such a critical development stage into early adulthood. It was really interesting way for me to learn about Zimbabwe and this period in history that I otherwise knew very little about.
Reading through some of the reviews for this book has really annoyed me. I can appreciate a well-thought through negative review even if the opinions differ from my own, but these just display an incredibly ignorant readership.
We Need New Names is not supposed to be a sweet little story with happy characters and happy endings. It has been a long time since I have read anything this REAL. So what if you don't like Darling or Aunt Fostalina? How many people in real life are truly likable, in any case.
This is not a made up little story. The characters might be fictional but nothing in this book is a lie. It is not a story that follows a nice meandering road and if that is what you want in a book, then this is not what you should be reading. More than a concrete novel, this book is a collection of stories, with a hint of stream-of-consciousness.
You won't be spoon-fed what happens. So maybe you'll need to read up a little about what exactly happened in Zimbabwe. Is that such a trainsmash? This book is not written to explain a sequence of events that is easily accessible on the internet.
And put your pride in your pockets about Darling's "disdain" for America. So WHAT? Should people start pooping rainbows just because they get to live in America? It doesn't matter how perfect the country is, it is not home, and until you have been removed from the country of your blood, you will not understand how it is possible to long for a place so marred with poverty and violence.
Truly, if you are not willing to have your mind opened, don't read this book.
(This review brought to you by the effort not to spew negativity on other people's reviews.)
We Need New Names is not supposed to be a sweet little story with happy characters and happy endings. It has been a long time since I have read anything this REAL. So what if you don't like Darling or Aunt Fostalina? How many people in real life are truly likable, in any case.
This is not a made up little story. The characters might be fictional but nothing in this book is a lie. It is not a story that follows a nice meandering road and if that is what you want in a book, then this is not what you should be reading. More than a concrete novel, this book is a collection of stories, with a hint of stream-of-consciousness.
You won't be spoon-fed what happens. So maybe you'll need to read up a little about what exactly happened in Zimbabwe. Is that such a trainsmash? This book is not written to explain a sequence of events that is easily accessible on the internet.
And put your pride in your pockets about Darling's "disdain" for America. So WHAT? Should people start pooping rainbows just because they get to live in America? It doesn't matter how perfect the country is, it is not home, and until you have been removed from the country of your blood, you will not understand how it is possible to long for a place so marred with poverty and violence.
Truly, if you are not willing to have your mind opened, don't read this book.
(This review brought to you by the effort not to spew negativity on other people's reviews.)
This is a moving book that portrays the complexities of immigrant life. It is a series of related, chronological stories that begin with the narrator's childhood in an unnamed but tumultuous African country (the author is from Zimbabwe, but specifically avoids naming the country within the book). Although that life is full of undeniable hardship, it becomes clear once she immigrates to America that there are many things back home that she misses and can't replace. Both her identity and her relationship with her own history become more complex and confusing, and she illustrates that being uprooted to a new place, despite the opportunities that brings for new connections, sometimes means being even more isolated than ever, removed from the old culture but never fully fitting into the new. The story that I found to be the most moving, 'The Way They Lived,' should be required reading for everyone, given the current firestorm of conversation about immigration and immigrants in the media. Also, her incisive observations about American culture are entertaining and thought-provoking.
I loved this! It's a recent favorite. The author grew up in Zimbabwe and immigrated to the US at age 18 with the idea of going to college and law school. Thankfully, she became a writer instead after being inspired to do so while attending Kalamazoo Valley Community College. The novel begins with narrator Darling, age 11, living in a refugee situation in Zimbabwe. In the first half of the book, Darling describes her life before and after the government troops destroyed their town and livelihoods. Darling and her friends play made-up 'country games' and steal guavas to assuage their hunger. The second half of the book takes place in Detroit and Kalamazoo after Darling comes to the US to live with her aunt. It's a classic, and beautifully told, immigrant story. The chapter between Zimbabwe and the US is pure poetry. It's called "How They Left" and starts out: "Look at them leaving in droves, the children of the land, just look at them leaving in droves. Those with nothing are crossing borders. Those with strength are crossing borders. Those with ambitions are crossing borders. Those with hopes are crossing borders. Those with loss are crossing borders. Those in pain are crossing borders. Moving, running, emigrating, going, deserting, walking, quitting, flying, fleeing - to all over, to countries near and far, to countries unheard of, to countries whose names they cannot pronounce. They are leaving in droves." I highly recommend this lovely, and occasionally raw, novel.
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, War
Minor: Child abuse
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
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:
No
A raw & vivid story told with so much nuance & heart, that will have you laughing out loud! It was so easy to love Darling & her friends. I really enjoyed the POV of a 10-year-old narrator, watching Darling grow up & how her perspective of America & Zimbabwe changed after migration. But I was confused by the abrupt ending.