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kokechii's review against another edition
3.0
3/5 but actually 2.5 - I think I wanted to like this more than I did. At first very engaging, specially with the different POV's, but by the ending it just left me wanting more.
mayastone's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
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
4.0
Waiting, now, for the day Lily died to be over, but for some reason that day will not stop.
White is for witching, a colour to be worn so that all other colours can enter you, so that you may use them. At a pinch, cream will do.
I read about the soucouyant, the wicked old woman who flies from her body and at night consumes her food, the souls of others—soul food!—in a ball of flame. At dawn she returns to her body, which she has hidden in a safe place.
White is for witching, a colour to be worn so that all other colours can enter you, so that you may use them. At a pinch, cream will do.
I read about the soucouyant, the wicked old woman who flies from her body and at night consumes her food, the souls of others—soul food!—in a ball of flame. At dawn she returns to her body, which she has hidden in a safe place.
cllorento's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
singalana's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It’s not a bad book - it just wasn’t for me.
White is for Witching is a book by Helen Oyeyemi. It tells the story of Miranda Silver, who, together with her twin brother and her father, lives in a house that four generations of Silver women have inhabited. The twins’ mother has died, and it causes Miranda to have a breakdown and start spiralling.
The book has four narrators - three first-person and one third-person. This makes the story a little bit hard to follow at times. Miranda’s brother Eliot, her friend Ore and the house itself are the first-person narrators. Miranda’s point of view is narrated through the third person. Not only does this make the story slightly hard to follow, but it also raises questions about which of the narrators - if any - are reliable?
The writing style of the novel is complex: on the sentence level, it’s very beautiful and evocative, but the stylistic choices can be jarring at times. As the house appears to consume Miranda, the reader starts to question which of the events are real.
The book is certainly creepy and weird, but I’ve started to question whether weird books are for me. If you’re a fan of Murakami’s Dance, Dance, Dance or Han Kang’s The Vegetarian, you might enjoy this book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Chronic illness, Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Grief, Mental illness, Death of parent, Cannibalism, and Confinement
Minor: Racism, Alcohol, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Xenophobia, Confinement, Murder, Cursing, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
ithilienlady's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
spiderwitch's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
usnebojemesa's review against another edition
5.0
The more of her works I read the more I love her writing style and the choices she makes in her writings/books. I really good discovery.
blulibrarian's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
It was off to a slow start, but as the story unfolds, it draws you in a tighter and tighter spiral, moving at a faster clip. I enjoyed the through lines in this work; the family sickness passed down as trauma until the source is all but forgotten and the symptoms are rote performance without understanding the play. There are some passages that really stand out as sensations you can sink into, which I really enjoyed. A story that relies too heavily on visuals loses me; this did not suffer from that. Still, I felt a little too disconnected from what was unfolding and unsure of my handle on the story itself to truly sink in to it.
bluecanary's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25