A review by balladofreadingqueer
Patsy by Nicole Dennis-Benn

adventurous 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? Yes

4.25

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would as I had heard mixed reviews.

It follows Patsy who leaves her daughter Tru in Jamaica and travels to the US to be with a women she loved as a teenager. Although the relationship with Cicely does not pan out as Patsy planned and life in the US is hard and gruelling, Patsy stays. Tru, left behind in Jamaica, grows up under the shadow of her mother’s absence.

Centring on family, this book examines the generational pain of motherly abandonment as Mama G abandoned Patsy to God and Patsy leaves Tru for America. The lack of acceptance or difficulties of  living as queer black women in Jamaica and the US are explored throughout. Both Patsy and Tru explore and struggle to come to terms with their queerness. This is set to a backdrop of poverty, immigration and football.

Although the eponymous character makes choices that are judged by family and society, the character is written in a way that encourages understanding and empathy with Patsy as she struggles to find her place.

It didn’t end with the happy reunion that I wanted and I wish that I knew more about Tru and Patsy reconnecting but it was a more realistic ending for their relationship.
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