CULTURAL
A BURNING BY MEGHA MAJUMDAR | BOOK REVIEW
A Burning by Megha Majumdar tells the story of three characters and their yearning for improved status in life, finding themselves connected by a horrific event that will leave a lasting impression. The story is told in three POVs that take us through their lives and showcase how interconnected their stories are as the story progresses.
- ADULT, ARCS, BOOK REVIEWS, CONTEMPORARY, CULTURAL, FICTION, HISTORICAL FICTION, LITERARY FICTION, NETGALLEY
WILD WOMEN AND THE BLUES BY DENNY S. BRYCE | BOOK REVIEW
Wild Women And The Blues is a fantastic portrayal of African Americans during 1920s Chicago, at the height of the Jazz age in all of its vibrancy and splendor. The story is told in dual timelines spanning almost a hundred years. Denny S. Bryce has done a fantastic job of bringing both the contemporary and the historical setting together in the novel with brilliance. The book is a mix of historical fiction and contemporary fiction with the dual timelines splitting the two with alternating chapters taking us through the lives of Honoree and Sawyer. Bryce has captured the atmosphere of the 1920's time and paints vivid imagery of glamor, splendor,…
- ADULT, ARCS, BOOK REVIEWS, CULTURAL, FICTION, HISTORICAL FICTION, LITERARY FICTION, NETGALLEY, WEST AFRICAN
KOLOLO HILL BY NEEMA SHAH | BOOK REVIEW
Kololo Hill by Neema Shah is the debut Asian Ugandan literature set in 1970's Uganda that will captivate you with its human story of love, loss, and desperation of families who were thrown out of their homes and country. This was such a familiar story, yet so different and important to be read in these times of division, hatred, and otherisms. It is very relevant to the times we live as conversations of race, inequality, oppression, power, and devastation are at the forefront of our lives. Overall, this is a story that sheds light on the expulsion of Asian Ugandans during Idi Amin's oppressive regime. This is a lesser-known history…
DAUGHTERS OF NIGHT BY LAURA SHEPHERD-ROBINSON | BOOK REVIEW
Daughters Of Night by Laura Shepherd-Robinson is a dark historical murder/mystery/thriller set in 1780's England. I recently found out after reading the book, that this actually has characters from her previous book Blood & Sugar. We are following Caroline Corsham, a wealthy woman who is determined to find the identity of the murderer of Lady Lucy Loveless. Initially, upon discovering the brutally attacked woman, Caro realizes the Lady's attack was planned, and before she could get answers, Lucy dies in Caro's arms. The investigation gets picked up by Bow Street Runners and they stop s it when they realize the real identity of the woman who was murdered. The mystery…
CHOKECHERRY GIRL BY BARBARA MEYER LINK | RABT BOOK BLITZ
It’s 1958. Racial tension and class disparities have everyone on edge in a small Montana town. Despite their differences, three women of the community become the unlikeliest of friends. BOBBI VERNON is a quirky teen, who will do whatever it takes to drive her teacher’s new Chevy convertible. Adding to the already volatile mix, she meets Pretty Weasel, an Indian basketball player, who calls her Chokecherry Girl. She dreams of dating him and wearing his class ring. PATSY OLSON, after two failed marriages, is desperate to get her life back. After opening a beauty shop with a shaky bank loan, she watches Coach Vernon, Bobbi’s father, arriving for school each…
THE GILDED ONES BY NAMINA FORNA ( DEATHLESS #1) | BOOK REVIEW
The Gilded Ones By Namina Forna is a West African YA fantasy novel that tackles the oppression of women by an extremist religious community. It is the first book in the Deathless series. I remember seeing this cover and being blown by it. It is truly one of the most beautiful covers I have ever seen and the colors just pull you in. This is a story that is unapologetically feminist and female-centric cast takes on us a journey to unravel the secrets of a patriarchal community. The gilded Ones tells the story of Deka, a 16-year-old who is subjected to the deeply abusive blood ritual of their community to…
- ADULT, ARCS, BOOK REVIEWS, CULTURAL, EAST AFRICAN, FICTION, HISTORICAL FICTION, LITERARY FICTION, NETGALLEY, REALISTIC FICTION
WE ARE ALL BIRDS OF UGANDA BY HAFSA ZAYYAN | BOOK REVIEW
We Are All Birds Of Uganda by Hafsa Zayyan is an emotionally resonant story of two different men and how their lives intersect in unexpected ways, changing lives forever. We follow Hasan during 1960's Uganda through his love letters that are to his wife. Hasan talks about his experiences living in Uganda as a successful businessman in Kampala. As a son of Indian immigrants, he talks about the Asian community, their lives, the new anti-immigrant sentiment on the rise, and the growing racial division that endangers their livelihood. In the present day, we follow Sameer, a highly successful lawyer in London. Despite his success, he feels burned out and not…
- ADULT, ARCS, BOOK REVIEWS, CONTEMPORARY, CULTURAL, FICTION, HISTORICAL FICTION, LITERARY FICTION, NETGALLEY, SPECULATIVE FICTION, WOMEN'S FICTION
FRAGILE MONSTERS BY CATHERINE MENON | BOOK REVIEW
Fragile Monsters from Catherine Menon is a family saga spanning from the 1920s to the present, with rural Malaysia serving as a backdrop to the mysteries and secrets that are unraveled. We get the story from two perspectives, one from Durga, a maths Professor at Kuala Lumpur University, and one from Mary, Durga's fierce and sharp-tongued grandmother. Durga is visiting her grandmother and wants nothing more than to spend the days peacefully and leave the house that's filled with painful memories. Her plans go awry when during Diwali celebrations, Mary is met with a firecracker burn incident. This leads to Durga spending more time with her grandmother and the two…
- ADULT, ARCS, BOOK REVIEWS, CULTURAL, FICTION, HISTORICAL FICTION, LITERARY FICTION, NETGALLEY, Scotland
SHUGGIE BAIN BY DOUGLAS STUART | BOOK REVIEW
Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stewart is the winner of the 2020 Booker Prize. To know that this book was rejected 32 times before it got published is baffling to me. Reading that was such a shock and the irony of it is just great. The book is a winner for the Booker Prize, and it's almost like the universe telling the publishers where to take their rejections. I haven't read the other books on the list, and I do have to say after reading this book, I am not surprised that this book got the recognition it did. Every time I see a book that is a popular book, on…
BOOK REVIEW : HOW BEAUTIFUL WE WERE BY IMBOLO MBUE
How Beautiful We Were is a literary fiction/cultural fiction written by Imbolo Mbue. The story is set in the fictional African village of Kosawa. It tells the heartwrenching tale of the suffering and turmoil caused by the greed of western oil companies. The story is an unforgettable one written with brutal honesty and captures the readers from the get-go. It is told from multiple perspectives helping us put together the puzzle that will leave us with the whole picture. All characters provide us with insight into the situation and help us learn the life before and after the companies started to drill for oil. It is a powerful story that…
