3littlewordz's reviews
175 reviews

This was an 8 month journey to complete 😂

I enjoyed overall and it provided so much context to the news I remember reading during Obama's first term. It was incredibly well-written, detailed but LONG. My goodness, oh so long. I could have read it straight through in a week or so, but I have to space out the density with other books. Still, I'm very ready for the next installment, which should cover the second campaign and term. 

This is Harlequin modernized and i enjoyed! I'm not the biggest romance reader, but will read Black authors. Figured a quick Christmas romance read was just the thing for my low-key Christmas. This was easy to predict, but still fun to read. Definitely laughed out loud a few times and there was a lot of spice 😉

Overall, I enjoyed this debut novel. The premise of the story was simple yet bold and intriguing - what does it mean to be Black in a world without White people? What makes a person Black, White or other? Is Black a phenotypic description or something deeper? I appreciated how the plot explored these concepts and more, particularly how racism and white supremacy can infect your psyche and push you to practice it in the absence of oppression. It also beautifully displayed the power of unity without requiring uniformity (word to Audre Lorde). 

Unfortunately, some of the story got lost in the convoluted, flowery descriptions and some plotlines could have been better explored. The ending seemed unfinished - not like a cliff hanger, but like the author had a deadline to meet and rushed to throw something together.  Overall though, great read that I couldn't put down! Looking forward to what Cebo Campbell gives us next.

I enjoyed this book overall. It was mostly well-paced until we reached the end, which flew by. My one retraction was tue family dynamic. It seems in many of our stories we have extremes: an absolute horrible mother (or father) with seemingly no explanation as to how they got that way, or a single parent who has to sacrifice almost all of themselves to make sure their kids are good. I'd love more nuance.

Way too light on the dialogue. Felt so rushed and repetitive. Aware it's targeted to a YA audience, but there could have been far more nuanced and developed. We get introduced to two new civilizations in around 350 pages? Ehh. Not horrible, but could have been far more developed. 

The writing in this memoir was profound - to write about loss and grief so beautifully without being incredibly heavy is difficult but Sloane Crosley achieved it. I loved the interplay of learning more about Sloan's friendship with her best friend Russell and the robbery that precedes his death. I had to rewind the audiobook so many times to soak in the quotables - two of my faves: 

"If you don't change, change will find you in its most unruly form. It will press down on your vulnerability until they squish out the edges. Life needs volunteers or else it will start calling on people at random."

"The needs of the living are more important than the wants of the dead."

This was a quick listen - I strongly suggest the audiobook version!

The Fraud by Zadie Smith was a surprisingly enjoyable read. I picked this up because it mentioned chattel slavery in Jamaica, and I am working to learn more about my ancestry. The book was based on historical events, centering around the trial of Arthur Orton, who attempted to claim the estate of Sir Roger Tichborne. Andrew Bogle, a formally enslaved man from Jamaica, testified on Arthur Orton's behalf. Smith used many historical references to develop and flesh out this fictionalized account and explored various themes - can you be considered a fraud when you genuinely believe in what you're saying? If you have to essentially become 'a fraud' to survive as Andrew Bogle did? Pertaining to Eliza, are you being fraudulent to yourself when you don't fully live in your truth, particularly when you would have to fight against so many norms to do so?  

The story also addressed mob mentality in such a fantastic way. One statement summed it up so succinctly:  "But such dry and inconvenient facts were of no consequence here, in the ocean of feeling." 

The mention of Hope Plantation and Sam Sharpe led me to research further some prominent figures in Jamaica's history of slavery rebellions, which I appreciated. I understand that the plot structure may not have worked for many readers. At times it was offputting how often the story seemed to boomerang between past and present. But overall, I enjoyed the story, once I got through the first several chapters. I did NOT like most of the characters BUT the way the story was developed kept me engaged.