On Black Sisters' Street
Registered by VictoriaWagtail of Bagarmossen, Stockholm Sweden on 11/30/2011
This Book is Currently in the Wild!
6 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by VictoriaWagtail from Bagarmossen, Stockholm Sweden on Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Before Efe came to Belgium, she imagined castles and clean streets and snow as white as salt. Belgium, '...a country wey dey Europe. Next door to London'.
At the house on Zwarterzusterstraat, four very different women have made their way from different parts of Africa to claim for themselves the riches of Europe. Drawn together by tragedy, the women reveal, each in her own voice, what has brought them to their present lives. Joyce, a great beauty whose life has been destroyed by war; Ama, whose dark moods manifest a past injustice; Efe, whose efforts to earn her keep are motivated by a particular zeal and finally, Sisi, whose imagination takes her far beyond the squalor of her reality. These are stories of terror, of displacement, of love, and of a sinister man named Dele... Raw, vivid and suffused with the power of the oral story-telling tradition, "On Black Sisters' Street" is a moving story of the illusion of the West through African eyes, and its annihilation. It is also, however, a story of courage, of unity and of hope.
My comment:
I was hooked almost from page one! This is such an important and strong story. I like the way Nigerian pigin english (?) was woven into the dialouge. Reading this book was almost like watching a documentary.
This book deserves many readers!
At the house on Zwarterzusterstraat, four very different women have made their way from different parts of Africa to claim for themselves the riches of Europe. Drawn together by tragedy, the women reveal, each in her own voice, what has brought them to their present lives. Joyce, a great beauty whose life has been destroyed by war; Ama, whose dark moods manifest a past injustice; Efe, whose efforts to earn her keep are motivated by a particular zeal and finally, Sisi, whose imagination takes her far beyond the squalor of her reality. These are stories of terror, of displacement, of love, and of a sinister man named Dele... Raw, vivid and suffused with the power of the oral story-telling tradition, "On Black Sisters' Street" is a moving story of the illusion of the West through African eyes, and its annihilation. It is also, however, a story of courage, of unity and of hope.
My comment:
I was hooked almost from page one! This is such an important and strong story. I like the way Nigerian pigin english (?) was woven into the dialouge. Reading this book was almost like watching a documentary.
This book deserves many readers!
Happy hollidays! I wish you a merry Christmas and a good book ;)
Be an activist, join the fight against HIV
Be an activist, join the fight against HIV
This is going to the top of my TBR pile. Thank you, VictoriaWagtail, and Merry Christmas!
update 10 january 2012: Finished this last night. It's an important read. Fiction but clearly based on real (very real) experiences. I'll definitely pass this along soon.
update 10 january 2012: Finished this last night. It's an important read. Fiction but clearly based on real (very real) experiences. I'll definitely pass this along soon.
I've been anxious to keep this book moving and now I've found a good reader for it - the winner of the March International Sweepstakes! Coincidentally, it's traveling back to the country where it started its travels. I hope you enjoy this powerful book!
Thank you! This seems to be one of those important books. A story you know will change you as read it. Looking forward to it!
My bookshelves are threatning to cave under my enormous Mount TBR so I offered this to Dubaireaders Global Fiction VBB and Erishkigal has now picked it out. Off to Utah! And I can cross another US state off my list. :-)
And it is safely here in Utah. Nice to be a new place on your map, too, Elskaliam; I recently sent my first to Sweden :)
This sounds like an incredible (if not necessarily easy to read/digest) book~and one I look forward to moving to the top of my tbr. Thanks for sharing, and sending it on.
This sounds like an incredible (if not necessarily easy to read/digest) book~and one I look forward to moving to the top of my tbr. Thanks for sharing, and sending it on.
Another book I would have sworn I journalled~damn! It's probably been a good six months since I read this, and I set it aside to send to my brother. And as I haven't done that yet, this morning I loaned it to tostle to read first. You are absolutely right, victoria~~this excellent book deserves to be read by many.
I found this book at times painful to read. Nonetheless, I am very glad I chose and read it: this is an important book, based in horrendous realities, and one I learned from.
Thanks all for sharing!
I found this book at times painful to read. Nonetheless, I am very glad I chose and read it: this is an important book, based in horrendous realities, and one I learned from.
Thanks all for sharing!
Erishkigal shared this book with me at our monthly Salt Lake meet up. I am anxious to read it. Thanks for sharing!
This is a hauntingly beautiful book. I read it several years ago after Erishkigal shared it with me. I will release it for others to enjoy.
Journal Entry 11 by tco at St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Brevard, North Carolina USA on Saturday, March 9, 2024
Released 2 wks ago (3/9/2024 UTC) at St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Brevard, North Carolina USA
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
Left in the LFL