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erinreadstheworld 's review for:
Homegoing
by Yaa Gyasi
So many people told me I had to read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. I wish I had listened earlier because it's such an amazing book. It's the kind of book I want to hug when I think about it now. The kind of book that I wanted to savour and stay lost in, equally as much as I couldn't put it down.
Yaa Gyasi is beyond talented. Homegoing is an epic family saga. Spanning nearly 300 years and 7 generations, the novel gives such a clear, beautiful and painful insight into each of its characters. From mid 1700s to modern day, we follow two families who are seperated but eternally connected. The story starts with two sisters - one who married a wealthy Englishman in the business of selling slaves, the other who is sold into slavery - and then follows their descendants and their starkly different lives in Ghana and in America.
It's not an easy read and I don't even know how many times my heart was broken. But the stories in the book were and are still experience by countless people, and they are stories that deserve to be told.
I'm blown away by Yaa Gyasi's skills at weaving together stories. We only get to hear from a character for one chapter, yet somehow Gyasi conveys so much about each characters' dreams and fears, hopes and hurts. I loved how you knew about characters before you got to their specific chapter - seeing them first as a child, then as an adult. The understanding I had for each side of the family grew in each chapter. Themes, family trauma and some family traits were expanded on with each generation.
In staying that, I was also very thankful for the family tree at the front of the book. Seven generations of two sides of a family is a lot to keep track of, so I was glad I could flip back and make sure I had my bearings.
Homegoing is beautiful, moving, touching and powerful. It's engaging, emotive, it's evocative and deeply engrossing. It's everything a great book should be. It's a book that is surrounded by so much hype but it's deserving of every single ounce of it. If any asks me for a book recommendation, you can bet that Homegoing will be one of my first suggestions.
Yaa Gyasi is beyond talented. Homegoing is an epic family saga. Spanning nearly 300 years and 7 generations, the novel gives such a clear, beautiful and painful insight into each of its characters. From mid 1700s to modern day, we follow two families who are seperated but eternally connected. The story starts with two sisters - one who married a wealthy Englishman in the business of selling slaves, the other who is sold into slavery - and then follows their descendants and their starkly different lives in Ghana and in America.
It's not an easy read and I don't even know how many times my heart was broken. But the stories in the book were and are still experience by countless people, and they are stories that deserve to be told.
I'm blown away by Yaa Gyasi's skills at weaving together stories. We only get to hear from a character for one chapter, yet somehow Gyasi conveys so much about each characters' dreams and fears, hopes and hurts. I loved how you knew about characters before you got to their specific chapter - seeing them first as a child, then as an adult. The understanding I had for each side of the family grew in each chapter. Themes, family trauma and some family traits were expanded on with each generation.
In staying that, I was also very thankful for the family tree at the front of the book. Seven generations of two sides of a family is a lot to keep track of, so I was glad I could flip back and make sure I had my bearings.
Homegoing is beautiful, moving, touching and powerful. It's engaging, emotive, it's evocative and deeply engrossing. It's everything a great book should be. It's a book that is surrounded by so much hype but it's deserving of every single ounce of it. If any asks me for a book recommendation, you can bet that Homegoing will be one of my first suggestions.