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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
Incredibly ambitious. It took me awhile to get into the groove because it was linguistically a little challenging, but once I got past that I was in it for the long haul. The consistency of the dialect was really impressive, as was the universe building. The narrative was unpredictable and surprising, and left the reader with just enough questions. This is one of those stories that sticks around in your head for a long time after reading. I would read the sequel. I would watch the movie (or miniseries).
The story of a woman in some future where a terrible disease has killed off (and continues to kill off) people over the age of about 20. It's also told in a author-made dialect that makes the first few chapters tough to read.
Overall: this started really strong, as the concept was interesting, and the world that was created was fascinating.
But the story went too long. The initial focus was narrow in scope, concentrating on people and locations in just one spot. The stories and characterization there were wonderful. That focus got larger as the book wore on, and things became much, much less interesting. And by the time the end happened, 400 pages later, I had become quite tired of the whole thing.
So the fundamental basis of my low rating is simply that the book stretched too far. It really wanted to be much smaller.
2 of 5 stars.
Overall: this started really strong, as the concept was interesting, and the world that was created was fascinating.
But the story went too long. The initial focus was narrow in scope, concentrating on people and locations in just one spot. The stories and characterization there were wonderful. That focus got larger as the book wore on, and things became much, much less interesting. And by the time the end happened, 400 pages later, I had become quite tired of the whole thing.
So the fundamental basis of my low rating is simply that the book stretched too far. It really wanted to be much smaller.
2 of 5 stars.
Wow. Just. Wow. I am really impressed. Now, this is not an easy book. Or a perfect book. And it will break your heart. But it is worth the trouble and the tears.
The Dialect: Just don't worry about it. Just go with it and you'll be understanding in no time and find yourself responding to your husband "Is bone". :-) It is really not that difficult. And it is not racist ebonics. It is imagining what a future language might sound like. You'd have to be blind not to notice French influences . . . that doesn't seem "ebonics". It's MADE UP, people. Just go with it!
OK, the basic premise is this: This is in the future, in an future when the world has been devastated by a virus that kills everyone at ages 18-20. Most white people are dead or evacuated; the entire world is black children trying to survive in an environment where they know they will be dead by 20. What would happen to industrialization? Cities? Language? Religion? The family? It's all in here. Everyone alive is locked into a harsh world. And in this world, one young girl dares to dream of something better, a future where her brother (her first concern) and later, others, won't need to die young. She's a nobody, but she is beautiful and strong and brave and, when she meets an adult "roo" (Russian soldier) she catalyzes a set of events that takes her to New York and Washington, starts wars, takes over a religion, gambles everything--everything! on an idea. I'll be thinking about this book and its world and Ice Cream Star for days. Unforgettable.
The Dialect: Just don't worry about it. Just go with it and you'll be understanding in no time and find yourself responding to your husband "Is bone". :-) It is really not that difficult. And it is not racist ebonics. It is imagining what a future language might sound like. You'd have to be blind not to notice French influences . . . that doesn't seem "ebonics". It's MADE UP, people. Just go with it!
OK, the basic premise is this: This is in the future, in an future when the world has been devastated by a virus that kills everyone at ages 18-20. Most white people are dead or evacuated; the entire world is black children trying to survive in an environment where they know they will be dead by 20. What would happen to industrialization? Cities? Language? Religion? The family? It's all in here. Everyone alive is locked into a harsh world. And in this world, one young girl dares to dream of something better, a future where her brother (her first concern) and later, others, won't need to die young. She's a nobody, but she is beautiful and strong and brave and, when she meets an adult "roo" (Russian soldier) she catalyzes a set of events that takes her to New York and Washington, starts wars, takes over a religion, gambles everything--everything! on an idea. I'll be thinking about this book and its world and Ice Cream Star for days. Unforgettable.
This was definitely one of the strangest books I read in 2017. I think it might fall into the admired but unloved category. Sandra Newman clearly put a lot of work into creating this novel, it just didn’t quite resonate with me. That doesn’t mean it didn’t impact me though. I thought about this book for weeks afterwards, trying to puzzle out how I felt about it.
The story takes place in some future where most of the population of America has died off and society has collapsed. There’s some disease that makes people die in their late teens or early twenties. There’s no escaping Posies (their name for the disease). Children have organized themselves into clans run by the eldest kids. Where this book shines is in the world building. Can you imagine a world run by teenagers? Newman clearly thought through the ramifications and built her world to reflect that. It’s a world where children grow up quickly, language changes happen within a generation or two, and emotions run high.
Ice Cream Star is about 15 years old when her brother gets Posies. Her clan has just captured a white man who claims to be 30 years old. Driven by the promise of a cure, Ice Cream forges a bond with this man that takes her in some unforeseen directions. Newman’s novel is large in scope, a true epic story. My major complaint is that after 640 pages, there was no real resolution to the story. In my opinion, it’s okay to have sequels, but your individual books need at least some kind of resolution to make the reader happy. This didn’t have that.
Newman chose to tell her story in dialect which took a few chapters to get into. I could see it being off putting to some readers though.
I’m not sure if I’ll read the sequel when it comes out to be perfectly honest. Although the worldbuilding was great, I didn’t really connect to the characters. I’m not sure what the point of revisiting them would be.
The story takes place in some future where most of the population of America has died off and society has collapsed. There’s some disease that makes people die in their late teens or early twenties. There’s no escaping Posies (their name for the disease). Children have organized themselves into clans run by the eldest kids. Where this book shines is in the world building. Can you imagine a world run by teenagers? Newman clearly thought through the ramifications and built her world to reflect that. It’s a world where children grow up quickly, language changes happen within a generation or two, and emotions run high.
Ice Cream Star is about 15 years old when her brother gets Posies. Her clan has just captured a white man who claims to be 30 years old. Driven by the promise of a cure, Ice Cream forges a bond with this man that takes her in some unforeseen directions. Newman’s novel is large in scope, a true epic story. My major complaint is that after 640 pages, there was no real resolution to the story. In my opinion, it’s okay to have sequels, but your individual books need at least some kind of resolution to make the reader happy. This didn’t have that.
Newman chose to tell her story in dialect which took a few chapters to get into. I could see it being off putting to some readers though.
I’m not sure if I’ll read the sequel when it comes out to be perfectly honest. Although the worldbuilding was great, I didn’t really connect to the characters. I’m not sure what the point of revisiting them would be.
Once you internalize the patois voice, the story starts to become easier to understand and follow. I enjoyed the drama and the pathos, but was slightly distanced from it by the limited nature of what the patois could convey. I'm hoping another volume in this universe is on its way.
This is a brilliant book, the lovechild of Station Eleven, Oryx and Crake, and Riddley Walker.
I've finished this books and I still don't know how I feel about it.
I really liked how the author showed the change in cultures from our present-day America, and that was really the main reason I kept reading. Well, that and how the dialects worked (ugh I love dialects). I left the book confused and felt like all the drama was worth nothing in the end. Perhaps that was the point, I'm not sure.
Post-pandemic future, with lots of world-building. Language is a very strong dialect of English that took a while to get my head around, but eventually became interesting and lyrical. However I just couldn't find the emotion to get involved in the story, and didn't engage well enough with the protagonist (all other characters having essentially only bit-parts).
I feel really bad about this review, but essentially, I couldn't force myself through the book. The whole book is written in dialect. And while I can appreciate how much effort Newman put into coming up with her own language essentially, I often got lost trying to decipher this language and trying to figure out what was going on in the book, let alone what the characters were saying.
I couldn't figure out if the characters' names were words, places, or if they actually were characters. I was so lost. Nearly 50 pages into this 600-page monster and I literally had no idea what I was reading. Were it not for the summary on the inside cover, I'd have no clue what this book was about.
I'm giving it two stars mainly because, again, I can appreciate the author's work. I just didn't get it. Granted, I probably didn't give it enough of a try. I may come back to it later when I actually have the time and patience to get further into the book.
I couldn't figure out if the characters' names were words, places, or if they actually were characters. I was so lost. Nearly 50 pages into this 600-page monster and I literally had no idea what I was reading. Were it not for the summary on the inside cover, I'd have no clue what this book was about.
I'm giving it two stars mainly because, again, I can appreciate the author's work. I just didn't get it. Granted, I probably didn't give it enough of a try. I may come back to it later when I actually have the time and patience to get further into the book.