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A review by kellyjcm
Pemba's Song: A Ghost Story by Marilyn Nelson, Tonya C. Hegamin
2.0
Pemba moves from NYC to Connecticut unwillingly. Torn from her best friend and boyfriend, the only world she has ever known, to live in small-town New England, populated primarily by white residents. Her house appears to be haunted, and this is somehow related to the local history that Abraham, an older black man who has befriended Pemba and her mother, has been researching.
I so wanted to love this book. And I did enjoy aspects of it. Pemba's narrative voice is strong and authentic, and her poems are fantastic: introspective and relatable, but still genuine teen. Also, an authors' note explains that the history of Colchester, Connecticut (the setting) that is related in the book is real, which I didn't know before I read, so I found that fascinating.
The downside? The ghost story never took off for me. It read more like a mystery, lacking in the atmospheric tension requisite for a ghost story. The paranormal element of the story, which I won't reveal here, is certainly a focus, but definitely lacks a seamless integration with the character and her backstory.
Surprisingly, the prose writing feels like an early draft rather than a finished piece. Transitions between paragraphs are really abrupt, and I didn't feel as though there is enough dialogue to "cover" characters' actions within scenes. A few minor plot details are introduced but not really resolved, particularly the one regarding Pemba's father. The poetry that is the voice of Phyllys only confused me, but that might be because I don't understand how the paranormal connection between Phyllys and Pemba works.
I so wanted to love this book. And I did enjoy aspects of it. Pemba's narrative voice is strong and authentic, and her poems are fantastic: introspective and relatable, but still genuine teen. Also, an authors' note explains that the history of Colchester, Connecticut (the setting) that is related in the book is real, which I didn't know before I read, so I found that fascinating.
The downside? The ghost story never took off for me. It read more like a mystery, lacking in the atmospheric tension requisite for a ghost story. The paranormal element of the story, which I won't reveal here, is certainly a focus, but definitely lacks a seamless integration with the character and her backstory.
Surprisingly, the prose writing feels like an early draft rather than a finished piece. Transitions between paragraphs are really abrupt, and I didn't feel as though there is enough dialogue to "cover" characters' actions within scenes. A few minor plot details are introduced but not really resolved, particularly the one regarding Pemba's father. The poetry that is the voice of Phyllys only confused me, but that might be because I don't understand how the paranormal connection between Phyllys and Pemba works.