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A review by martista
The Emperor's Babe by Bernardine Evaristo
4.0
Honestly a POV/context/situation I had never ever seen before and that is uhhh-mazing. Very refreshing. It's set in Londinium, in the midst of the Roman Empire's hegemony over Europe. Not only is the setting something entirely new to me, but also the people whose stories are told. It's about the underdogs in that society, the people that we never hear of when we look back 2000 years in history. The main character and narrator is Zuleika, a young girl of Nubian origin (i.e. black & daughter of immigrants). And then at 11 she gets married off to a Roman governor 20 years her senior (lol). And then the story starts.
Bernardine Evaristo's style is once again funky and doesn't follow classic prose rules. It's almost like reading a poem, but not really. It's halfway between prose and poetry and that's actually quite cool? The reading rhythm definitely changes; it somehow kept me on my toes. Paid more attention to the form and style, and not just the content. Challenging at times but also new so yes, Marta stamp of approval.
Must mention how certain nuances I found suuuuper cool, like how the language characters use is English with some Latin terms thrown in often (the tentacles of imperialism!); also how the author surprises you when all of a sudden someone uses actual, everyday language, used mostly as slang. Makes me go "waaait a minute, I know this". Brings me back to reality for a hot sec and reminds me how these characters (or the people they represent) DID exist. Underdogs like you and me. But in Londinium. AD 211. (!!!)
Other than that the story is quite tragic tbh. Why can't women ever win :))))))))))))
Bernardine Evaristo's style is once again funky and doesn't follow classic prose rules. It's almost like reading a poem, but not really. It's halfway between prose and poetry and that's actually quite cool? The reading rhythm definitely changes; it somehow kept me on my toes. Paid more attention to the form and style, and not just the content. Challenging at times but also new so yes, Marta stamp of approval.
Must mention how certain nuances I found suuuuper cool, like how the language characters use is English with some Latin terms thrown in often (the tentacles of imperialism!); also how the author surprises you when all of a sudden someone uses actual, everyday language, used mostly as slang. Makes me go "waaait a minute, I know this". Brings me back to reality for a hot sec and reminds me how these characters (or the people they represent) DID exist. Underdogs like you and me. But in Londinium. AD 211. (!!!)
Other than that the story is quite tragic tbh. Why can't women ever win :))))))))))))