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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
This was a fine story - just fine. I can not for the life of me figure out why it was selected as a featured read on Jenna's list though, as it was just a "fine" coming of age story. Of course, I can appreciate the dynamics of the main character coming into her own and the associated family challenges, but there really wasn't much to the story. Personally, I enjoyed the mentions of all of the London places because it reminded me of my trip to the city and the fact I was in most of the areas she mentioned -- but other than that it was kind of an everyday story without much depth. Given that it was a featured Jenna pick, I kept thinking I was missing something or that my age (54) was too far removed from the struggles of a twenty-something. I don't know. Kudos to the author though for having her first novel garner so much attention.
Maame tells the story of Maddie, nicknamed Maame, and the trials that come with trying to find out who you are and where you belong. I listened to this on audio, and I thought it was deeply moving. Maddie was always putting someone else first -- her dad, her family, her friends, and her job. This story had so much depth and feeling, and, as the reader, I really felt for Maddie and wanted more than anything for her to succeed and know how worthy she was. The narrator for this book was amazing, as she really made you feel what Maddie was going through, her sadness, her anger, her hurt. Overall, this was a fantastic book and one that I am so glad I read.
Thank you to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the audiobook ARC in exchange for a review.
Thank you to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for the audiobook ARC in exchange for a review.
Oh my goodness!! You know how sometimes you read a book and you see yourself on the pages, this is exactly what reading Maame was for me; never mind the fact that I am a 45 year old, white, Jewish, American woman and Maddie is a 25 year old Ghanaian British woman. I saw myself from my early twenties loud and clear, and it was eye opening.
Maddie (her mother affectionately calls her Maame [Mah-meh], Ghanaian for woman) is the sole caretaker for her ailing Dad. While an aid does come in a few times a week, most of it falls to Maddie, and thus at 25, she is still living at home, working at a job she hates, and hasn’t been in a relationship. When her mother comes home for an extended period of time, Maddie moves out to start her life. As scary as it is, she figures out who she is amongst trials and tribulations. Watching the growth Maddie went through was truly spectacular. Jessica George had written a masterpiece of a book. She has left her heart (and probably some tears) on the paper, but she has created a character and story that nearly everyone can relate to in one way or another.
I knew this had a bunch of accolades going into this and I’m happy to say it definitely lives up to all the hype.
Maddie (her mother affectionately calls her Maame [Mah-meh], Ghanaian for woman) is the sole caretaker for her ailing Dad. While an aid does come in a few times a week, most of it falls to Maddie, and thus at 25, she is still living at home, working at a job she hates, and hasn’t been in a relationship. When her mother comes home for an extended period of time, Maddie moves out to start her life. As scary as it is, she figures out who she is amongst trials and tribulations. Watching the growth Maddie went through was truly spectacular. Jessica George had written a masterpiece of a book. She has left her heart (and probably some tears) on the paper, but she has created a character and story that nearly everyone can relate to in one way or another.
I knew this had a bunch of accolades going into this and I’m happy to say it definitely lives up to all the hype.
This book sat on my shelf for over a year before I finally picked it up and read it. It was so hyped up in 2023 that I was afraid of how this read would go. Without much surprise, this one fell a bit flat for me.
The premise of the book was brilliant, but the structure of the story felt off. The first half of the book feels chaotic and like the reader is only fed small snippets of information, not giving a complete picture. The second half is much stronger and I felt more invested in the storyline. At times, the story read more like diary entries than an actual connected storyline as topics jumped off each other quickly.
On to the story, 25 year old Maddie is of Ghanaian decent, working a low wage job in London while caring for her father who has Parkinson's disease. Her mother is living Ghana and her older brother is off traveling the world, leaving Maddie the burden of being alone with her dad and figuring out how to pay for everything. The stress of her life, coupled with her lack of overall life experience is the main driver of this book.
At times, this book felt so relatable as Maddie was constantly googling things. Who hasn't been there before? But the topics which she was constantly questioning felt sad. She never had normal life experiences to know about dating, love, sex, friendship, or even basic things most people her age would have knowledge about. Her 25 years felt stunted and juvenile despite having gone to university.
I think the parts of the book that worked for me was the way in which Maddie's character expressed her grief, or mostly how her culture differs from normalized cultural expectations of grief expression. I loved how her workplace provided her with a therapist to help process her grief after losing her father. The therapist sessions were probably the most revealing parts of the story and I loved how it helped Maddies character evolve. I think that the layers that the book peeled back dealing with how families or cultures keep certain aspects of life hidden was eye opening and worth noting.
I feel that overall this story was disjointed in many aspects but had a great message on growing up, taking charge of your life, and becoming who you want to be. I wish I loved it more.
The premise of the book was brilliant, but the structure of the story felt off. The first half of the book feels chaotic and like the reader is only fed small snippets of information, not giving a complete picture. The second half is much stronger and I felt more invested in the storyline. At times, the story read more like diary entries than an actual connected storyline as topics jumped off each other quickly.
On to the story, 25 year old Maddie is of Ghanaian decent, working a low wage job in London while caring for her father who has Parkinson's disease. Her mother is living Ghana and her older brother is off traveling the world, leaving Maddie the burden of being alone with her dad and figuring out how to pay for everything. The stress of her life, coupled with her lack of overall life experience is the main driver of this book.
At times, this book felt so relatable as Maddie was constantly googling things. Who hasn't been there before? But the topics which she was constantly questioning felt sad. She never had normal life experiences to know about dating, love, sex, friendship, or even basic things most people her age would have knowledge about. Her 25 years felt stunted and juvenile despite having gone to university.
I think the parts of the book that worked for me was the way in which Maddie's character expressed her grief, or mostly how her culture differs from normalized cultural expectations of grief expression. I loved how her workplace provided her with a therapist to help process her grief after losing her father. The therapist sessions were probably the most revealing parts of the story and I loved how it helped Maddies character evolve. I think that the layers that the book peeled back dealing with how families or cultures keep certain aspects of life hidden was eye opening and worth noting.
I feel that overall this story was disjointed in many aspects but had a great message on growing up, taking charge of your life, and becoming who you want to be. I wish I loved it more.
What an astonishingly beautiful book.
I may write more later. But that much will remain true.
5 stars.
I may write more later. But that much will remain true.
5 stars.
Maame by Jessica George is a fresh coming-of-age novel. Such a fantastic debut novel. This is one of the first novels I’ve read where the main character is a caregiver for her father with late-stage Parkinson’s disease. I work with people with Parkinson’s disease. I felt this book did well describing the condition and how it can impact the person and the family. I did need to pause reading because it was triggering for me as I was reading it around the anniversary of my father’s sudden passing. I highly recommend this book and audiobook. It was narrated very well. TW: loss of a parent.
Thank you, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio, for my gifted copies.
Thank you, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio, for my gifted copies.
2.5 stars rounded up because it did get better towards the end, but I really struggled to get into it to begin with and I felt like it was either a bit too long or needed something to add more interest to the plot.
Parece sempre que já não pode piorar, mas pode.
It’s not fair to say it was a slow start because I was definitely in a reading rut but regardless it took me awhile to get past the first 50 pages. But i ended up really enjoying and loving this book. A truly special view of grief and her descriptions and processes felt very deep and true. I was so rooting for Maddie, loved this.