Scan barcode
A review by blueeyedshook
Hurricane Summer by Asha Bromfield
fast-paced
4.5
Wow. This was unlike any book I have read. And for it to be a debut is even more astonishing. We meet Tilla as she is heading to visit her father in Jamaica over the summer. The place of his birth, returning to her own origin story in a way. Discovering not only who she is but where she came from. Tilla's discovering the country of Jamaica is such a beautiful metaphor of her own life and her own strength that she is discovering while she is there.
"We are the children of Jamaica, and we are screaming out in agony, in pain, in love, and in joy."
The contrast of the beauty and the hardship, a metaphor for the joy and the pain that she experiences over the summer. Seriously, some of the prose were so beautiful I didn't want them to end.
While the story seemed to go from one hardship to another, it also didn't feel depressing because of the beautiful between the pages. As it is in real life, there are always moments of joy amid the pain, light amid the darkness.
The only portion that felt like a little let down was the hurricane. The scenes during the hurricane were done beautifully. Like a picturesque movie of the harshness and devastation while also the beauty that could only be found by someone who has walked and run through a hurricane.
But the scenes were just so few. The book is NAMED Hurricane Summer (a metaphor for Tilla herself, yes, but also the hurricane). And the build up to the hurricane took the majority of the book. So the promise to the reader would be that the hurricane itself was a part of the climax....and yet there were a few brief scenes in the hurricane. While the aftermath was absolutely heart wrenchingly satisfying for the reader, I wanted to see a little more pages on the 24 hours of the hurricane itself.
A minor nitpick in the midst of a masterful debut, and a true tribute to the island country of Jamaica.
"We are the children of Jamaica, and we are screaming out in agony, in pain, in love, and in joy."
The contrast of the beauty and the hardship, a metaphor for the joy and the pain that she experiences over the summer. Seriously, some of the prose were so beautiful I didn't want them to end.
While the story seemed to go from one hardship to another, it also didn't feel depressing because of the beautiful between the pages. As it is in real life, there are always moments of joy amid the pain, light amid the darkness.
The only portion that felt like a little let down was the hurricane. The scenes during the hurricane were done beautifully. Like a picturesque movie of the harshness and devastation while also the beauty that could only be found by someone who has walked and run through a hurricane.
But the scenes were just so few. The book is NAMED Hurricane Summer (a metaphor for Tilla herself, yes, but also the hurricane). And the build up to the hurricane took the majority of the book. So the promise to the reader would be that the hurricane itself was a part of the climax....and yet there were a few brief scenes in the hurricane. While the aftermath was absolutely heart wrenchingly satisfying for the reader, I wanted to see a little more pages on the 24 hours of the hurricane itself.
A minor nitpick in the midst of a masterful debut, and a true tribute to the island country of Jamaica.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape