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amakaazie's review
4.0
4.5 stars
Loved this book! Started off a bit slow and I was about to give up but decided to keep on reading. Boy was I glad I did.
Totally enjoyed the narrative of family mistakes, family being torn about by them and restoration of faith in family.
Mma is reading her mother’s memoir after her death and discovers a father she never knew, his other life and the reason her parents split.
She eventually finds that her hatred for her mother is completely misguided and begins to heal after.
Well told, engaging from a quarter way in and completely worth my 2 days staying up late to read!
I recommend
Loved this book! Started off a bit slow and I was about to give up but decided to keep on reading. Boy was I glad I did.
Totally enjoyed the narrative of family mistakes, family being torn about by them and restoration of faith in family.
Mma is reading her mother’s memoir after her death and discovers a father she never knew, his other life and the reason her parents split.
She eventually finds that her hatred for her mother is completely misguided and begins to heal after.
Well told, engaging from a quarter way in and completely worth my 2 days staying up late to read!
I recommend
diamondhope's review
3.0
After reading On Black Sister's Street and Better Late Than Never, I had very high expectations for this book.
Sadly, it doesn't pick up until Rapu's part. I wish I could have had a little more character development when it comes to E. She sounded much bigger than life yet we had to only learn about her as a character in other people's stories where she was just a subplot.
All in all 2.5 stars.
Sadly, it doesn't pick up until Rapu's part. I wish I could have had a little more character development when it comes to E. She sounded much bigger than life yet we had to only learn about her as a character in other people's stories where she was just a subplot.
All in all 2.5 stars.
favourite_igbo_boy's review
3.0
Night dancer is a story in three parts which primarily revolve around three women (Ezi, Mma and Rapu).
~A story of self-discovery.
I rolled my eyes at the start of this book, due to the patriarchy story of which I've heard in those days, and the struggle at the start.
Along the line I was really laughing my ass out.
Though the starting was slow that I actually didn't felt the need of continuing the book but curiosity kept me going and I was like, you gotta finish this.
The book, at some pages into it was so realistic (The way parents especially from the igbo culture would give replies, handle situations and issue).
Ezi repetition of words at first got me thinking if she was a anyway a *stamara*
I thought about those who might not really really enjoy the read due to the igbo words, though I wished it was properly written.
Mma reminds me of my childhood days, primary and even secondary school. those days I had lots of biscuits and sweets with friends but now, we don't keep in touch.
I saw how the so called marriage was important to these women, how the women also supported patriarchy by themselves.
I saw full IGNORANCE among some characters and mostly the Lokpanta people.
Also I didn't quite agree with (let's forget even if it's a novel), like when the priest was giving a story that I couldn't relate to (the Christmas and the woman not able to fetch water relating both to Christmas)
~A story of self-discovery.
I rolled my eyes at the start of this book, due to the patriarchy story of which I've heard in those days, and the struggle at the start.
Along the line I was really laughing my ass out.
Though the starting was slow that I actually didn't felt the need of continuing the book but curiosity kept me going and I was like, you gotta finish this.
The book, at some pages into it was so realistic (The way parents especially from the igbo culture would give replies, handle situations and issue).
Ezi repetition of words at first got me thinking if she was a anyway a *stamara*
I thought about those who might not really really enjoy the read due to the igbo words, though I wished it was properly written.
Mma reminds me of my childhood days, primary and even secondary school. those days I had lots of biscuits and sweets with friends but now, we don't keep in touch.
I saw how the so called marriage was important to these women, how the women also supported patriarchy by themselves.
I saw full IGNORANCE among some characters and mostly the Lokpanta people.
Also I didn't quite agree with (let's forget even if it's a novel), like when the priest was giving a story that I couldn't relate to (the Christmas and the woman not able to fetch water relating both to Christmas)
balancinghistorybooks's review
3.0
Night Dancer has rather an impressive scope, spanning fifty years of Nigerian history. The novel opens in Enugu in 2001 and follows a young woman named Mma. Unigwe’s prose makes her situation apparent from the outset. Her parents separated when she was just a baby and, despite the presence of serious boyfriend Obi, she is left quite alone after her mother Ezi’s untimely death.
Mma is resentful of her mother and the upbringing she has had. A fractured relationship between mother and daughter has existed since she was a child, and the disparities between the characters is one of the pivotal overriding themes in the novel.
Following her death, Mma uncovers a collection of Ezi’s memoirs which her mother had urged her to read on several occasions. She was reluctant to do so, as “she was afraid that the letters might reveal something that would call into question all her righteous indignation at the dead woman”. The truths which Unigwe weaves through her narrative often have a moving quality about them. By transcribing some of the memoirs in the narrative, a multi-layered story is created. The use of two differing perspectives and the second section of the novel which takes place during the late 1960s, works well, making the story stronger both in terms of its characters and its telling.
Stylistically, Unigwe’s prose is powerful. Cultural presence is strong throughout, and the Nigerian landscape becomes almost a character in itself. Words in Igbo, the national language of Nigeria, have been used, reinforcing the social importance of the world in which Mma lives. Even in the twenty-first century, the disparities between males and females are made apparent: “We women are little people” and “men will sleep with anything”. With her inclusion of the unrest which spans Nigerian history, Unigwe ensures that her novel is also historically grounded.
Night Dancer is essentially a novel of self-discovery; of evaluating and embracing life, and learning to understand those around you. The story is well executed, but the only qualm is that Mma is not always a likeable character. Despite reading Ezi’s memoirs, she is dismissive of her mother. Traces of selfishness and self-pity continually resonate from her and seem intrinsic with her character. In some ways she is complex, but conflicting traits in her personality do not make her realistic enough. Although the reader sympathises with her plight, her lack of empathy – even of humanity, at times – is hard to believe.
Mma is resentful of her mother and the upbringing she has had. A fractured relationship between mother and daughter has existed since she was a child, and the disparities between the characters is one of the pivotal overriding themes in the novel.
Following her death, Mma uncovers a collection of Ezi’s memoirs which her mother had urged her to read on several occasions. She was reluctant to do so, as “she was afraid that the letters might reveal something that would call into question all her righteous indignation at the dead woman”. The truths which Unigwe weaves through her narrative often have a moving quality about them. By transcribing some of the memoirs in the narrative, a multi-layered story is created. The use of two differing perspectives and the second section of the novel which takes place during the late 1960s, works well, making the story stronger both in terms of its characters and its telling.
Stylistically, Unigwe’s prose is powerful. Cultural presence is strong throughout, and the Nigerian landscape becomes almost a character in itself. Words in Igbo, the national language of Nigeria, have been used, reinforcing the social importance of the world in which Mma lives. Even in the twenty-first century, the disparities between males and females are made apparent: “We women are little people” and “men will sleep with anything”. With her inclusion of the unrest which spans Nigerian history, Unigwe ensures that her novel is also historically grounded.
Night Dancer is essentially a novel of self-discovery; of evaluating and embracing life, and learning to understand those around you. The story is well executed, but the only qualm is that Mma is not always a likeable character. Despite reading Ezi’s memoirs, she is dismissive of her mother. Traces of selfishness and self-pity continually resonate from her and seem intrinsic with her character. In some ways she is complex, but conflicting traits in her personality do not make her realistic enough. Although the reader sympathises with her plight, her lack of empathy – even of humanity, at times – is hard to believe.
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