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jodiesbookishposts 's review for:
We Need New Names
by NoViolet Bulawayo
I’ve been making a bit of a thing over the last couple of years, to try and vary my reading. I’ve read more prize nominated books than I used to and I’ve been trawling Literary ‘Best book’ lists. This is one such book. The reason it appealed to me is the subject matter. I don’t read a lot of books about other cultures, and displacement. That’s something I want to change. It sounded really appealing and the cover’s I’ve seen are beautiful, I’m going to have to get the print version of the book so it can sit on my shelf.
The story is about Darling who originally comes from Zimbabwe, and it’s split into two times. Her childhood in Zimbabwe, and her teens in America. She has a growing narrative voice, meaning that it is sometimes hard to understand the earlier chapters and as her language develops with age, the prose does too. The main drive force of the novel is the idea of escape to another place. In Zimbabwe, she dreams of living in America. In America, she is nostalgic for home in Zimbabwe. It’s a very subtle and bitter-sweet story.
I can’t really comment on how it is like to leave a place you call home. I’ve lived in the same house all my life and when I finally did venture out for university I went to a university half an hour a way from home. I’ve never had that feeling of not belonging to a place. For that I’m fortunate. But what I got from this book was a little bit of understanding. I really empathised with Darling and what she felt and went through. Some parts of the book were horrifying. I still can’t get over the scene with Chimpo’s Belly. It chilled me.
In terms of an enjoyable read, I wouldn’t put it up there as a favourite. But I have a feeling it has a lot to be gained through rereading. It is another book I would like to analyse a little bit more. Maybe next year I’ll read it again.
The story is about Darling who originally comes from Zimbabwe, and it’s split into two times. Her childhood in Zimbabwe, and her teens in America. She has a growing narrative voice, meaning that it is sometimes hard to understand the earlier chapters and as her language develops with age, the prose does too. The main drive force of the novel is the idea of escape to another place. In Zimbabwe, she dreams of living in America. In America, she is nostalgic for home in Zimbabwe. It’s a very subtle and bitter-sweet story.
I can’t really comment on how it is like to leave a place you call home. I’ve lived in the same house all my life and when I finally did venture out for university I went to a university half an hour a way from home. I’ve never had that feeling of not belonging to a place. For that I’m fortunate. But what I got from this book was a little bit of understanding. I really empathised with Darling and what she felt and went through. Some parts of the book were horrifying. I still can’t get over the scene with Chimpo’s Belly. It chilled me.
In terms of an enjoyable read, I wouldn’t put it up there as a favourite. But I have a feeling it has a lot to be gained through rereading. It is another book I would like to analyse a little bit more. Maybe next year I’ll read it again.