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A review by sidekicksam
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
"We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must always ask yourself, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth? Once you have figured that out, you must find that story too. From there, you begin to get a clearer, yet still imperfect, picture."
Following the line of descendants of two sisters who never met, each chapter is a snapshot of the life of another generation. One sister is sold into slavery, one marries a white man and remains free.
Now *this* is what I mean when I say I want to read a multigenerational family saga! Phenomenal. Astounding. Compelling. Captivating.
I already knew I loved Gyasi's writing style because Transcendent Kingdom is one of my favourite books, and I've been seeing nothing but raving reviews for Homegoing, but they all are true. The story is, despite it only showing a glimpse into every generation's descendant's life, so layered. It is incredible how she's able to write a character so well, despite only reading about their lives for about 20 pages.
Some multigenerational family sagas are daunting because of their size (The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois & Pachinko are both 500+ page chonkers and thus, quite intimidating), but this one is both manageable and easy to follow, so a great place to start if you're looking for a thought-provoking, immersive read that spans multiple decades.
Some quotes:
Quey sighed. So he would be here forever. The birds had stopped singing. Perhaps they sensed his exasperation. He looked at them, their blue, yellow, orange wings, their hooked beaks.
"Theere were no birds like this in London," Quey said softly. "There was no color. Everything was gray. The sky, the buildings, even the people looked gray."
"We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must always ask yourself, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth? Once you have figured that out, you must find that story too. From there, you begin to get a clearer, yet still imperfect, picture."
Forgiveness was an act done after the fact, a piece of the bad deed's future. And if you point the people's eye to the future, they might not see what is being done to hurt them in the present.
Following the line of descendants of two sisters who never met, each chapter is a snapshot of the life of another generation. One sister is sold into slavery, one marries a white man and remains free.
Now *this* is what I mean when I say I want to read a multigenerational family saga! Phenomenal. Astounding. Compelling. Captivating.
I already knew I loved Gyasi's writing style because Transcendent Kingdom is one of my favourite books, and I've been seeing nothing but raving reviews for Homegoing, but they all are true. The story is, despite it only showing a glimpse into every generation's descendant's life, so layered. It is incredible how she's able to write a character so well, despite only reading about their lives for about 20 pages.
Some multigenerational family sagas are daunting because of their size (The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois & Pachinko are both 500+ page chonkers and thus, quite intimidating), but this one is both manageable and easy to follow, so a great place to start if you're looking for a thought-provoking, immersive read that spans multiple decades.
Some quotes:
Quey sighed. So he would be here forever. The birds had stopped singing. Perhaps they sensed his exasperation. He looked at them, their blue, yellow, orange wings, their hooked beaks.
"Theere were no birds like this in London," Quey said softly. "There was no color. Everything was gray. The sky, the buildings, even the people looked gray."
"We believe the one who has the power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must always ask yourself, Whose story am I missing? Whose voice was suppressed so that this voice could come forth? Once you have figured that out, you must find that story too. From there, you begin to get a clearer, yet still imperfect, picture."
Forgiveness was an act done after the fact, a piece of the bad deed's future. And if you point the people's eye to the future, they might not see what is being done to hurt them in the present.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Slavery, and Homophobia