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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
At first I liked the book but felt like it dragged on a little, it was way too long unnecessarily
It taught me about the italian invasion and a piece of history I never knew about though which was nice
I thought the book was about the female soldiers but that storyline took so long to develop and even so I felt like they were just shadow characters, barely mentioned
It taught me about the italian invasion and a piece of history I never knew about though which was nice
I thought the book was about the female soldiers but that storyline took so long to develop and even so I felt like they were just shadow characters, barely mentioned
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Drug use, Hate crime, Vomit, Antisemitism, Grief, Death of parent
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I think I’d have liked this more if it were half as long. Mengiste is undeniably a talented writer, but this is way too overwritten and the war details are painfully tedious and hard to follow. The interludes and choruses worked well for me as formal techniques, but the main narrative is just...boring.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-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
The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste is a gripping portrayal of Mussolini's 1935 invasion of Ethiopia. In this vivid novel, Mengiste explored the role of the women soldiers who were left out of this historical record. Hirut is our main character and she is fierce and brilliant.
I am so glad I read The Shadow King! One of the things I love the most about reading is the fact that I am constantly learning. I knew very little about Mussolini's invasion of Ethiopia so reading this novel was a great history lesson.
I am so glad I read The Shadow King! One of the things I love the most about reading is the fact that I am constantly learning. I knew very little about Mussolini's invasion of Ethiopia so reading this novel was a great history lesson.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
informative
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I wish I liked this but I didn't. Another I should've DNF'd. One issue was the excruciating descriptions of the way light moves every few paragraphs (I'm sure she could've cut out 100 pages if she just removed all the descriptions of light). Then there was the fact that this is meant to be about women's role in fighting the Italian invaders, but it ended up being mostly about male soldiers. Hirut and Aster barely get a look-in, apart from in the gratuitous displays of sexual violence. I didn't feel I got a sense of what they were like as people at all, especially with Hirut.
What a shame, the subject matter was so interesting.
What a shame, the subject matter was so interesting.
challenging
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No