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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Set in a dystopian world where white people had colonized the largest land mass and the native black people lived segregated under oppression This is the story of Elimina Dubois' life from childhood to motherhood.
This is an intense story. I had mixed feelings until the last section (it is divided into three parts). The political makeup has many parallels with our world but enough differences that we know it's not. The middle part felt too historical fiction-y for my tastes but the book's ending was both bleak and full of hope. The author's only novel to date.
This is an intense story. I had mixed feelings until the last section (it is divided into three parts). The political makeup has many parallels with our world but enough differences that we know it's not. The middle part felt too historical fiction-y for my tastes but the book's ending was both bleak and full of hope. The author's only novel to date.
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Content Warning: racism, forced pregnancy, taking away children
This book put me into a reading slump. The summary really intrigued me and I'm always so excited to give more attention to Canadian literature but this book tried to be a trilogy in 300 pages. There were too many areas that needed more details and nuanced to really hit the mark and it just didn't do that.
The characters ended up falling flat and becoming more and more one dimensional instead of more nuanced. A lot of typical tropes for characters and stories were thrown about to see what stuck best instead of incorporated in a way that would have made it more enjoyable.
Then it's split into three parts and each of those parts is way too short to get across a nuanced understanding of what was happening. I wanted more details, more time spent in the different places, and more of an understanding of what could have been versus what ended up happening. I just think it was too subtle in a lot of things and then very heavy handed at the end to try and put all the themes together.
Not sure if I recommend this one!
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Content Warning: racism, forced pregnancy, taking away children
This book put me into a reading slump. The summary really intrigued me and I'm always so excited to give more attention to Canadian literature but this book tried to be a trilogy in 300 pages. There were too many areas that needed more details and nuanced to really hit the mark and it just didn't do that.
The characters ended up falling flat and becoming more and more one dimensional instead of more nuanced. A lot of typical tropes for characters and stories were thrown about to see what stuck best instead of incorporated in a way that would have made it more enjoyable.
Then it's split into three parts and each of those parts is way too short to get across a nuanced understanding of what was happening. I wanted more details, more time spent in the different places, and more of an understanding of what could have been versus what ended up happening. I just think it was too subtle in a lot of things and then very heavy handed at the end to try and put all the themes together.
Not sure if I recommend this one!
Like my reviews? Buy me a Ko-Fi!
emotional
hopeful
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
This book was haunting... there is no other way to describe it. I will be thinking about this book for a long time, Jael uses fiction to highlight the historical and present day racism that takes place in Canada. Would 100% recommend in fact I know I will be reading this one again.
* I want to note that this book does cover a variety of topics of trauma.
* I want to note that this book does cover a variety of topics of trauma.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-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
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The book was okay - the main character wasn't very exciting...none of the characters were really. What I did find interesting is that all the "debt" they talk about made me think of typical tax payers and the "redemption" they talk about makes me think of our retirement.
I'm not sure where and when the story is based. At first it seems like it's a future dystopian type, but as the story progresses, I sometimes felt as though it was based in the past. Although it's an imagined location, some phrases in the book makes me think that some of the characters may be of Hawaiian decent
I'm not sure where and when the story is based. At first it seems like it's a future dystopian type, but as the story progresses, I sometimes felt as though it was based in the past. Although it's an imagined location, some phrases in the book makes me think that some of the characters may be of Hawaiian decent
adventurous
dark
emotional
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:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-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
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars, I even considered 5 stars but I’m really stingy with my five star ratings and I didn’t love the last 1/4 of the book as much as the rest. I thought this was a really interesting and unique take on a dystopian coming of age stories. There is some very relevant social commentary and interesting characters. I liked the ties to colonialism and that, while this a kind of dust world, it felt a little to close to our own society for comfort. I liked that it didn’t want to wrap everything up in a neat little bow but did think the conclusion needed something more. While not written for young adults, they may enjoy it.