Reviews with content warning for Racism - Rootless

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Rootless by Krystle Zara Appiah

10 reviews

aseel_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
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

The ending was so sad but it also was a bit of a cop out in terms of dealing with the main conflict of the novel. I think the discussion around not wanting to be a mother was good but could have had more nuance and complexity, same thing with Sam and his relationship was his mother
Just generally there was a lot of interesting plot events that could have been explored more, which is a pity

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bloodmaarked's review against another edition

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emotional informative reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

i didn't mind this book for the most part, but it really brought home how a bad ending can completely ruin your perception of a story

✧ full review on my tumblr ✧

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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective 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

4.5

Rootless was a real favourite. It’s the story of Efe, a Ghanian woman living in the UK. Themes of motherhood particularly, but also marriage , mental health, migration, cultural expectations, and their intersections were explored in really powerful and unapologetic ways.The story started in the middle which grabbed my attention. Possibly a little too long and I have very mixed feelings about the ending but definitely a worthwhile read.

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amandalorianxo's review

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challenging reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.25

I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this debut except a couple at odds when it came to wanting to continue their marriage. However, this is way heavier than I anticipated and I had to stop reading every once in a while not to plunge deep into the depths of the sadness. I feel like the author , while she should be commended for this debut and wring it in the way she did, did a slight disservice going backwards for the storyline. I don’t really feel like I was able to get a good grasp of who the main characters are. Sam vaguely reminded me of the same Sam from Someday, Maybe except he’d black & from Ghana. The ending also didn’t make a lot of sense to me. I know Efe felt trapped and stuck but that way out ? It was heart breaking to read.

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elliez's review

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emotional reflective sad 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

This book gave me all the feels. Have tissues ready when you read this.

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arireadsitall's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful 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

4.25

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chloelj27's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Rootless by Krystle Zara Appiah

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

What I like:

💜 The timeline from the 1990’s to the present.

💚 Representation of Ghana’s culture.

💜 Awareness of several important issues (mental health/postpartum, societal expectations, familial pressures, racism etc).

💚 Depth of the characters (especially Efe).

This book had me intrigued from reading the synopsis and it definitely kept me intrigued when reading it. It packed many sensitive and real topics in a powerful, emotional way that many people experience, but was interesting to see how those issues are handled within a different culture. I loved the highlighting key points with each year as a chapter, although at times it felt slow in places, so had to push through. Personally, the way the narrative was written, I wasn’t a fan and I didn’t always feel connected to the characters. This could have been resolved I think if less time was spent on flashbacks and more on the relationships and character developments. That being said, I still think Rootless is worth the read if you want a book that gets you to reflect on finding who you are as a person and pushing past familial and societal pressures.

Thank you Net Galley, Harper Collins and Krystle for accepting me as an ARC reader in exchange for an honest review.

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amandas_bookshelf's review

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emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.0

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annie26's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

3.0

A strong debut and a heartbreaking story that I will not forget in a hurry. What a painfully realistic portrayal of love and marriage and how families can come together and fall apart. I found this to be a really stark and necessary assessment of how marriage and motherhood are used to define a woman’s worth in African society. This was a tough read in a lot of ways but so addictive too. Such a strong debut!

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introvertsbookclub's review against another edition

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challenging emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.5

A lot of the early chapters felt like they were padding out the novel, and I struggled to keep reading (the structure, the time jumps and the present tense didn’t help). However, by the half way mark the novel seemed to have found itself. It explored, in depth, the experience of being a woman who doesn’t want to have children; the cultural and familial pressure to do so anyway; the impact on mental health, sense of self, and life decisions when you are manipulated into motherhood; and the battle not to let your identity and purpose be entirely consumed by that motherhood. The husband’s role in this was so frustrating to read, but as the novel progressed there was real character growth and what felt like a serious consideration of the burden of care that is placed on women, finally recognised from a male perspective. This would make such a good book club read because there is so much to discuss, but I’m trying not to give away any spoilers. Other themes included migration and feeling separated from home, racism, sexism and access to healthcare, people pleasing, self-expression, and mental health. But just as I was starting to enjoy the book, the ending had to disappoint me. The author and the characters had made so many strides forward, and the ending completely undermined them. One day I want to read a novel about a woman who doesn’t want children that allows her a happy ending without compromising her feelings, but that is not this book. Reading this was a rollercoaster of mixed emotions, but it was worth it for the parts that worked well.

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