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A review by lisahowe27
Brother by David Chariandy
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
What everyone universally wants is to have the best for their kids. Better than what they had. This is what sets Ruth to leave Trinidad and come to end up in a housing complex in Scarborough, a suburb of Toronto, Canada, with her two children Michael and Francis. But…does she find a better life than what she would have had had she not left?
Through various flashbacks which are told in parallel with the main story, the reader is shown what their life is like when confronted with systemic barriers. Discussion of masculinity, brotherhood, family, race, and coming of age, all intersect into a beautifully woven account of the many lives in this suburb and with those who wish to leave it and escape.
Brother is not a gratuitous, graphic account of a shooting of a black man. Chariandy instead tells the true story of who lives here, delves into their hopes and dreams, and recounts what it means to love.
Through various flashbacks which are told in parallel with the main story, the reader is shown what their life is like when confronted with systemic barriers. Discussion of masculinity, brotherhood, family, race, and coming of age, all intersect into a beautifully woven account of the many lives in this suburb and with those who wish to leave it and escape.
Brother is not a gratuitous, graphic account of a shooting of a black man. Chariandy instead tells the true story of who lives here, delves into their hopes and dreams, and recounts what it means to love.