A review by myprettypages
Stories from the Tenants Downstairs by Sidik Fofana

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was out of my comfort zone but I did enjoy reading, for me this was an insightful read which focused on a part of society that is neglected and ignored. Each story had its own account on the character’s struggles to keep their home. This told tales of people struggling to get money for their rent and external factors that put them in a disadvantage of making enough income; like having a disability, being a single mother, careers being ruined etc. Each story had moments of hope and moments of despair and devastation. I really liked that Fofana wrote about a broad range of people and events whilst being able to intertwine all of the characters effectively.

I enjoyed how Sidik Fofana was able to put you into the perspective of the different tenants through their individual accents and dialects which made each story distinctive to each other. The informal writing did give an authentic style as it was reading about their lives through their eyes/experiences rather than the outside. Whilst I enjoyed the unique style of writing, it did make it difficult to get into each time there was a new story and the lack of speech marks did make it confusing at times but it was something I got used to. 

This is a great debut and would be perfect for people who enjoy books that focuses on the joy and pain of human experiences like ‘Open Water’ and a collection of short stories like ‘Five Tuesdays in Winter’.

Many thanks to John Murray Press and Netgalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.