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A review by ruth24
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
5.0
Each chapter in [b:Girl, Woman, Other|41081373|Girl, Woman, Other|Bernardine Evaristo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1542296262l/41081373._SY75_.jpg|64185267] focuses on a different person (most of them Black, British women), yet each story is somehow connected to all of the others (talk about six degrees of separation!). The Goodreads description for this book is spot on: "Teeming with life and crackling with energy — a love song to modern Britain and black womanhood."
Upsides:
- the varied connections between the characters
- the differences between how the characters view themselves vs. how they are perceived by others
- a timely, thought-provoking reflection on race, sexual orientation and gender
- the characters are well-developed and feel like real people
Downsides:
- the unconventional formatting really put me off at first, but once I stuck with it I found it increased the pace of the story
- I did find myself getting confused about who the characters were and how they were connected, especially in the last third of the book as I started to forget who was who
I can 100% see why this book won the Booker prize and would highly recommend it!
Upsides:
- the varied connections between the characters
- the differences between how the characters view themselves vs. how they are perceived by others
- a timely, thought-provoking reflection on race, sexual orientation and gender
- the characters are well-developed and feel like real people
Downsides:
- the unconventional formatting really put me off at first, but once I stuck with it I found it increased the pace of the story
- I did find myself getting confused about who the characters were and how they were connected, especially in the last third of the book as I started to forget who was who
I can 100% see why this book won the Booker prize and would highly recommend it!