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A review by andriawrites
Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga
5.0
After revisiting ‘Nervous Conditions’ nearly 6 years since my first reading, I remain in awe of Tsitsi Dangarembga’s characters and prose. I find that time has only reinforced my sympathies to Tambu and Nyasha, two memorable characters that speak to me on such an intense, emotional level.Refamiliarizing myself with Tambu’s world was important as I continue on with ‘The Book of Not’ and ‘This Mournable Body’
**
I absoluetly loved reading this novel. Dangarembga is a masterful writer and makes you feel so connected to her narrator, Tambu, who is caught between the weight of tradition and the enticing promises of modernity. Often read as a feminist narrative, Dangarembga recounts the story of a young teenage girl, Tambu who grows up in 1960s rural Rhodesia (today's Zimbabwe), wanting desperatly to go to school like her older brother. When Tambu is given the chance to move in with her educated Uncle and his family and puruse her studies at the mission, she starts to see the differences between herself and her family back on the homestead and the growing complexities of her relationship with her modern, anglicized cousin Nyasha. Nyasha herself, is probably one of the most intriguing characters of the whole novel. She realizes to what extent post-colonialism has infiltrated her mind and her psyche. Dangarembga writes about an interesting and thoughtprovoking dynamic and dychotomy between tradition and modernity. If you are not yet convinced that you should read this novel immeditely, I'll show you my copy, half of the lines are all underlined because it was just soooo damn good. Cannot wait to read the following novel in this three part series.
**
I absoluetly loved reading this novel. Dangarembga is a masterful writer and makes you feel so connected to her narrator, Tambu, who is caught between the weight of tradition and the enticing promises of modernity. Often read as a feminist narrative, Dangarembga recounts the story of a young teenage girl, Tambu who grows up in 1960s rural Rhodesia (today's Zimbabwe), wanting desperatly to go to school like her older brother. When Tambu is given the chance to move in with her educated Uncle and his family and puruse her studies at the mission, she starts to see the differences between herself and her family back on the homestead and the growing complexities of her relationship with her modern, anglicized cousin Nyasha. Nyasha herself, is probably one of the most intriguing characters of the whole novel. She realizes to what extent post-colonialism has infiltrated her mind and her psyche. Dangarembga writes about an interesting and thoughtprovoking dynamic and dychotomy between tradition and modernity. If you are not yet convinced that you should read this novel immeditely, I'll show you my copy, half of the lines are all underlined because it was just soooo damn good. Cannot wait to read the following novel in this three part series.