Scan barcode
A review by lit_vibrations
Lucky Girl by Irene Muchemi-Ndiritu
5.0
If you’re looking for the next good book you found it!!! I loooooved this story so much it was an interesting experience watching Soila’s journey to independence and the various challenges she faced while living in the United States. It was bold and beautifully-written, the beginning has a slow build but the deeper you get into the novel the more connected you become with the MC.
It follows Soila a young Kenyan woman from Nairobi who lived a sheltered life and was raised by a stern and dictative Catholic mother along with her aunts and grandmother. Soila always longed for independence and freedom after years of dealing with her mothers strong beliefs and controlling ways. When she finally made it to New York Soila realized the US was not all it claimed to be and begins to challenge all her beliefs about race, love, and family.
The author did a great job getting the reader emotionally invested in Soila’s life. Most of the book I sympathized with her character and found that she self-sabotaged a lot because of her mother’s behavior. So many times I wished she would finally stand up to her mother and do what was best for her own life. I really wanted her to tell her mother what Father Emmanuel did just so she would shut tf up. When her mother was diagnosed with early Alzheimer’s I hated watching Soila break off her engagement and move back to Kenya to care for her. Not because I didn’t like her mother because I didn’t lol but I felt Soila finally found happiness yet she still chose her mother over it.
Overall, the book was amazing it provided a fascinating exploration of finding independence and the cultural differences between countries. A few family secrets are also revealed and there are a few trigger warnings surrounding sexual assault, suicide, and abortions. The flow and atmosphere of the book also meshed well with the character development. Special thanks to the author & @thedialpress for my gifted copy!!!
It follows Soila a young Kenyan woman from Nairobi who lived a sheltered life and was raised by a stern and dictative Catholic mother along with her aunts and grandmother. Soila always longed for independence and freedom after years of dealing with her mothers strong beliefs and controlling ways. When she finally made it to New York Soila realized the US was not all it claimed to be and begins to challenge all her beliefs about race, love, and family.
The author did a great job getting the reader emotionally invested in Soila’s life. Most of the book I sympathized with her character and found that she self-sabotaged a lot because of her mother’s behavior. So many times I wished she would finally stand up to her mother and do what was best for her own life. I really wanted her to tell her mother what Father Emmanuel did just so she would shut tf up. When her mother was diagnosed with early Alzheimer’s I hated watching Soila break off her engagement and move back to Kenya to care for her. Not because I didn’t like her mother because I didn’t lol but I felt Soila finally found happiness yet she still chose her mother over it.
Overall, the book was amazing it provided a fascinating exploration of finding independence and the cultural differences between countries. A few family secrets are also revealed and there are a few trigger warnings surrounding sexual assault, suicide, and abortions. The flow and atmosphere of the book also meshed well with the character development. Special thanks to the author & @thedialpress for my gifted copy!!!