A review by amawomps
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson

3.0

I had to read this for my spiritual autobiography class and it's actually a sweet book. It's a bit dreary at times, but it really captures life that way, especially the life of someone with such an unfortunate upbringing as Jeanette. She never necessarily seems to realize how strange her childhood was, and in a way of coping with the oddities and trauma she experienced, her writing at times is childish and humorous to compensate for the dark undertones throughout her story. I don't usually read books like this, and I would never pick this up at the store, but I'm glad I was forced to read it. The only confusing thing is the fact that Winterson states this isn't an autobiography, yet it holds many similarities to her life as well as the main character sharing her name. It makes you wonder what's real and what's fake, still, it doesn't matter because the messages this book conveys transcends the question. I was mostly just sad reading it though, as there were few moments where Jeanette ever felt happy or secure in her bleary British suburb.