Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts by Soraya Palmer

6 reviews

bloodmaarked's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

aggressively mid. i won't remember this book by the end of the year.

✧ full review on my tumblr ✧

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Homophobia, Abortion, Cancer, Death of parent, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, and Transphobia

Moderate: Body horror, Medical content, Grief, Drug use, Colonisation, Dysphoria, and Cursing

the_true_monroe's review

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.75

This book is a tough one to process, in a good way. I never read anything like it, where the narrator goes in between directly telling about the day to day lives or specific events that occurred in the lives of 2 sisters, their mother and father, to telling stories of mythical creatures (often the family would tell these stories), to combining both to where you were made to wonder what was meant to be part of a mythical retelling or was happening in the moment in terms of interactions of the mythical and magical creatures with the family.

The magical realism is used to address and emphasize experiences surrounding coming of age, cultural identity, gender and sexuality, racism, trauma and what I think was one of the most defining themes (as it interacted with each of the ones I mentioned prior): generational trauma. 

I found this books thanks to Storygraph’s Around The World Challenge- representing Trinidad (this book takes place in Brooklyn, NY, Jamaica and Trinidad).

Definitely will be looking for more written by this author to enjoy!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racism, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Death of parent, Cancer, and Abandonment

Moderate: Abortion, Vomit, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Murder, Torture, Dysphoria, Suicide, Dementia, Outing, Drug use, and Alcoholism

Minor: Pedophilia, Incest, Slavery, Colonisation, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Sexism, and Cultural appropriation

philosophicellie's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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

4.0

I really liked how this book spun together the mythology, family history and personal narratives of the main characters. It showed that lives are complex and our understandings of what is happening is shaped by our stories. 

There is a lot that is difficult to read (see content warnings) but this is not used gratuitously, and finishes in a positive but not perfect way. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Colonisation, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Domestic abuse, and Abortion

nini23's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The opening is smashing and I like the cheeky cynical omniscient narrator. However, this novel reads young and the narrative unravels about two-thirds in. The folklore of Anansi, Dglo, the Rolling Calf, soucouyant and douen intertwine to make sense of life for a pair of American sisters with Jamaican Trinidadian heritage growing up in a chaotic household. Their home life is marred by domestic violence and infidelity by their father Nigel on their mother Beatrice.  The narrator from Anansi Stories promises to make us not hate the father by telling us more backstory. I still dislike Nigel for abandoning his first family and mother.

Let's talk about mothers. Being lgtb or a blocked young writer does not give teens an excuse to not be there for your mother.

Especially if she is terminally ill with cancer and wants to spend more time with you

Teenage angst does not eclipse everything. A lot of dramatics with little substance. The daughters weren't there to support their mother, the sisters didn't prop each other up, I am really not sure where the empowerment is.

There are a substantial number of lgtb characters - Harold (Nigel's brother is homosexual {his death still doesn't explain why Nigel is an ass}), Beatrice (I'm guessing she's bisexual or the lesbian part was beaten out of her by her mother), Sasha (lesbian or trans, unclear), Shay (trans)

I like the anti-colonial points made. That scene at the Jamaican restaurant is electric! 👍to the Trinidadian English dialogue.

Overall, I much prefer When We Were Birds by
Ayanna Lloyd Banwo. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Rape, Transphobia, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Cancer, Colonisation, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Racism

d0505's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Body horror

Moderate: Colonisation

2treads's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

"Nothing more dangerous than a story with an owner that no one can touch." –Beatrice

For me, it is the seamless weaving of our orality and roundabout ways of telling stories and histories that make this such a worthwhile read. Palmer has paid homage to the wealth of history that our stories represent. Using this very fractured family where violence, resentment, communication and its lack, familial dysfunction, and sexual identity are their own little stories.

For Sasha and Zora, their home was always volatile. Even when stories were shared, there was that darkness that seemed ingrained in the essence; how the one who tells shapes it for their own purposes. Here, the interaction between mother and daughters and father and daughters shows a complicated dichotomy and how parental influence and actions recur through generations.

I love the way Palmer reimagined our folklore, using it to tackle and highlight issues that are widespread and all too prevalent in our communities. Reading Beatrice and her daughter's stories was both a reckoning and celebration of the intricacies of our history and homes.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Colonisation, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Death

Minor: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, and Body horror