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A review by karicutie
Carolina Built by Kianna Alexander
5.0
"The only thing that truly frightens me is the idea that I might not take full advantage of the gift of freedom. I refuse to let that happen." (May be omitted after publishing)
5/5 Stars - biographical historical fiction about Josephine Leary, one of the first free Black women to become a real estate magnate.
It has been such a long time since I have read a biographical historical fiction, and I am so happy I hopped back on the wagon with this one! This novel follows the true story of Josephine Leary during her life as a free Black woman, trying to battle prejudice and racism, the expectations put on her as a wife and mother, managing her finances and properties independent of her husband, and most of all, claiming her freedom and making the most of her life by following her dreams: real estate.
Josephine Leary is passionate, strong, kind, dedicated, and one bad ass woman. Throughout this story, we see her marriage to Sweety, who I liked in the beginning, but slowly started to disgust me. I understand during this time he was considered open-minded, and it was interesting to see their relationship as a clear Black woman and a mixed Black man who passes as white, but he succumbed to societal pressure very quickly in the book and as we jumped years, his slow descent into his male ego was devastating to read and also wildly irritating. It made me so happy to read Jo stand up for herself and persist in her dream despite the irrationalities from Sweety. One of the things I loved most about Jo was that while she took care of her children, her businesses, her house, her husband, her friends, she NEVER laid down her dreams and taking care of herself. I found this to be such a strong characteristic for not just a woman of that time, but just as a woman in general. Battling responsibilities and being expected to take care of everyone and set aside your desires is a pressure and expectation still placed on women today, and I felt so inspired by Jo not breaking her promise to use her freedom and not back down from life.
Kianna Alexander did a fantastic job writing about this time period, and her commitment to her research about Jo was clearly thorough and loyal to Jo's history. Her writing has such incredible substance and had me flipping to every chapter without hesitation. The female friendship she wrote in this is perhaps one of my favorite elements to her adaptation. Her companionship with Rosa, Missouri, her mother, her grandmother, Eunice, and all of the Suffragette ladies was absolutely wonderful and a progressive commentary about the loyalty women should have for another; raising one another up instead of breaking each other down. While the events of the last chapter were an emotional roller coaster, it had such a beautiful wrap up for Jo's story and made me want to dig deeper into her legacy and look up current photos of her buildings and past businesses.
This book is definitely deserving of 5 stars! I think anyone who reads it will be in wonder of this amazing woman who we never hear enough about. I am so grateful for Kianna Alexander introducing Josephine Leary to me, and as an educator, I will 100% be bringing this role model up in my classes. Her legacy should be remembered for all time. I can't wait to see what Kianna comes out with next!
I was provided this ARC by Gallery Books.
5/5 Stars - biographical historical fiction about Josephine Leary, one of the first free Black women to become a real estate magnate.
It has been such a long time since I have read a biographical historical fiction, and I am so happy I hopped back on the wagon with this one! This novel follows the true story of Josephine Leary during her life as a free Black woman, trying to battle prejudice and racism, the expectations put on her as a wife and mother, managing her finances and properties independent of her husband, and most of all, claiming her freedom and making the most of her life by following her dreams: real estate.
Josephine Leary is passionate, strong, kind, dedicated, and one bad ass woman. Throughout this story, we see her marriage to Sweety, who I liked in the beginning, but slowly started to disgust me. I understand during this time he was considered open-minded, and it was interesting to see their relationship as a clear Black woman and a mixed Black man who passes as white, but he succumbed to societal pressure very quickly in the book and as we jumped years, his slow descent into his male ego was devastating to read and also wildly irritating. It made me so happy to read Jo stand up for herself and persist in her dream despite the irrationalities from Sweety. One of the things I loved most about Jo was that while she took care of her children, her businesses, her house, her husband, her friends, she NEVER laid down her dreams and taking care of herself. I found this to be such a strong characteristic for not just a woman of that time, but just as a woman in general. Battling responsibilities and being expected to take care of everyone and set aside your desires is a pressure and expectation still placed on women today, and I felt so inspired by Jo not breaking her promise to use her freedom and not back down from life.
Kianna Alexander did a fantastic job writing about this time period, and her commitment to her research about Jo was clearly thorough and loyal to Jo's history. Her writing has such incredible substance and had me flipping to every chapter without hesitation. The female friendship she wrote in this is perhaps one of my favorite elements to her adaptation. Her companionship with Rosa, Missouri, her mother, her grandmother, Eunice, and all of the Suffragette ladies was absolutely wonderful and a progressive commentary about the loyalty women should have for another; raising one another up instead of breaking each other down. While the events of the last chapter were an emotional roller coaster, it had such a beautiful wrap up for Jo's story and made me want to dig deeper into her legacy and look up current photos of her buildings and past businesses.
This book is definitely deserving of 5 stars! I think anyone who reads it will be in wonder of this amazing woman who we never hear enough about. I am so grateful for Kianna Alexander introducing Josephine Leary to me, and as an educator, I will 100% be bringing this role model up in my classes. Her legacy should be remembered for all time. I can't wait to see what Kianna comes out with next!
I was provided this ARC by Gallery Books.