Reviews

& This Is How to Stay Alive by Shingai Njeri Kagunda

keelin's review

emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

asmrbookishnesserin's review

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

elsieeex's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

58hrs's review

emotional reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

rach_fornow's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

I loved this book and how it opened up time and grief.
The way this sister loves her brother is so relatable and her wish to be rescue him made my heart near burst.
The family dynamics were very interesting as well. Also the way these older women were considered "crazy" is a very interesting subplot.
Beautifully written.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia

Moderate: Suicide

faizoo's review

sad medium-paced

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

2.0

chriscrane87's review

emotional sad

5.0

renee_alwanda's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.25

Grief captures lovers and beloved in waves; constricting lungs, restricting airflow, and then when and only when it is willing to go does it go.

So beautifully written. It did feel really rushed. Definitely should have been longer. 

lainey___07's review

mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

veroperovero's review

4.0

This is a beautiful and bittersweet novella about loss and the lengths a sister is willing to go to save a life. Looking forward to more work by this talented writer!

Merged review:

This is a beautiful and bittersweet novella about loss and the lengths a sister is willing to go to save a life. Looking forward to more work by this talented writer!