A review by callme_tippy
Lucy by Jamaica Kincaid

adventurous reflective sad slow-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

4.0

Lucy is not a happy person and although the book reads as light hearted it is actually a pretty sad book. Lucy is not the most likeable character, but I don't believe she is supposed to be. 

She is an older teenage girl that has a complicated relationship with her parents, and leaves her home Island to come to America where she meets a willfully ignorant white woman that becomes her friend. 

Her platonic relationships are complicated in the way that any relationship involving a willfully ignorant white person and a Black person would be. She both loves and hates her friends. Similar to the way she both loves and hates her mother. In this I do not think she is supposed to be particularly likable (although, I do like her lol), but I think you are supposed to understand her, even if you don't like her. 

It also helps that it is very well written, can't wait to read more by Jamaica Kincaid!
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