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A review by amyvl93
Those Bones Are Not My Child by Toni Cade Bambara
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
<i>Those Bones are Not My Child</i> shines a light on a period of history I knew very little about, and I only wish the whole novel was a bit tighter so it could really pack the punch, and get the readers, it should.
We're placed in the period of the late 1970s and 1980s, during the period of the Atlanta Child Murders where at least 30 young people were murdered. We (mostly) follow Zelda, whose son Sonny at first doesn't return home after going out, and as the novel progresses it becomes clear that he as at risk of joining the number of young people who have passed away. Zelda and her estranged husband Spence become engulfed in the world of parent campaigners, local politics and their own investigation into what has happened to the children - rubbing against rumours of organised crime and the Ku Klux Klan.
There's a lot to like in here, Bambara crafts such close, detailed character studies, particularly in the first few days after Sonny's disappearance - and there are moments when you feel really placed in the family home, in the overcrowded police station and in the local barber shops.
However, it is also a novel which she spent about twelve years crafting, and was edited by her friend the legend Toni Morrison and published after her death. I think perhaps this was a slight flaw as as the novel progresses there are numerous time jumps which become increasingly difficult to follow, and numerous other characters added who also become difficult to keep track of.
An important story which is sometimes undermined by the structure - I am keen to read more of Bambara in the future.
We're placed in the period of the late 1970s and 1980s, during the period of the Atlanta Child Murders where at least 30 young people were murdered. We (mostly) follow Zelda, whose son Sonny at first doesn't return home after going out, and as the novel progresses it becomes clear that he as at risk of joining the number of young people who have passed away. Zelda and her estranged husband Spence become engulfed in the world of parent campaigners, local politics and their own investigation into what has happened to the children - rubbing against rumours of organised crime and the Ku Klux Klan.
There's a lot to like in here, Bambara crafts such close, detailed character studies, particularly in the first few days after Sonny's disappearance - and there are moments when you feel really placed in the family home, in the overcrowded police station and in the local barber shops.
However, it is also a novel which she spent about twelve years crafting, and was edited by her friend the legend Toni Morrison and published after her death. I think perhaps this was a slight flaw as as the novel progresses there are numerous time jumps which become increasingly difficult to follow, and numerous other characters added who also become difficult to keep track of.
An important story which is sometimes undermined by the structure - I am keen to read more of Bambara in the future.