I read because one life is just not enough for me
Synopsis: The Halifax plantation is known as Empty by the slaves who work it under the pitiless gaze of its overseers and its owner, Massa Paul. Two young enslaved men, Samuel and Isaiah dwell among the animals they keep in the barn, helping out in the fields when their day is done. But the barn… Continue reading Review – The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
Rebecca... “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is one of my very favourite books of all time. It is often the first book I recommend to people when they want to start reading classics. It’s such a great introduction to that genre. It is dark, it is… Continue reading Movie Review – Rebecca
Synopsis: In The Lamplighter award-winning poet and Scottish Makar Jackie Kay takes us on a journey into the dark heart of Britain’s legacy in the slave trade. First produced as a play, on the page it reads as a profound and tragic multi-layered poem. We watch as four women and one man tell the story of… Continue reading Review – The Lamplighter by Jackie Kay
Synopsis: Based on real events brilliantly reimagined, this is an epic story of love and courage, desperation and determination, and three people who are inescapably entwined in each other's lives. Henry O'Toole sails to America to escape poverty and famine in Ireland, only to find anti-Irish prejudice awaiting him. Determined never to starve again, he… Continue reading Review – A More Perfect Union by Tammye Huf
Synopsis: AN INTIMATE, STIRRING PORTRAIT OF A COUNTRY AT WAR AND A FAMILY'S BATTLE TO SURVIVE Set against the backdrop of the Việt Nam War, The Mountains Sing is the enveloping, multi-generational tale of the Trần family, perfect for fans of Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko or Yaa Gyasi's Homegoing. Hà Nội, 1972. Hương and her grandmother, Trần Diệu Lan, cling to… Continue reading Review – The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai
Synopsis: Jussi, the young Sami boy Læstadius has rescued from destitution and abuse, becomes the preacher's faithful disciple on long botanical treks to explore the flora and fauna. Læstadius also teaches him to read and write - and to love and fear God. When a milkmaid goes missing deep in the forest, the locals suspect… Continue reading Review – To Cook A Bear by Mikael Niemi
Synopsis: It is with a soft voice, full of menace, that our mother commands us to overthrow our father . . . Richard Lionheart tells the story of his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. In 1173, she and three of her sons instigate a rebellion to overthrow the English king, her husband Henry Plantagenet. What prompts… Continue reading Review – The Revolt by Clara Dupont-Monod
Synopsis: America. In the twilight of the Gold Rush, two siblings cross a landscape with a gun in their hands and the body of their father on their backs . . . Ba dies in the night, Ma is already gone. Lucy and Sam, twelve and eleven, are suddenly alone and on the run. With their… Continue reading Review – How Much of These Hills is Gold by C Pam Zhang
Synopsis: The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Ten years later, one sister lives… Continue reading Review – The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Synopsis: A stunning debut novel with echoes of Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing and Sara Collins’ The Confessions of Frannie Langton The pale-skinned, black-eyed baby is a bad omen. That’s one thing the people on the old plantation are sure of. The other is that Miss Rue – midwife, healer, crafter of curses – will know what to do. But… Continue reading Review – Conjure Women by Afia Atakora
Sissi Reads 