This week’s set of mini-reviews are two of the most impressive reads I’ve picked up this year. N.K. Jemisin astounds me with her world-building and Elizabeth Acevedo punched me in the gut with her poetry. If you have not picked up either of these authors, you must do so immediately. Covers below are linked to Goodreads.
Title: The Fifth Season
Author: N.K. Jemisin
Series: The Broken Earth, #1
Pages: 468
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: August 4th 2015
“THIS IS THE WAY THE WORLD ENDS. AGAIN.
Three terrible things happen in a single day.
Essun, masquerading as an ordinary schoolteacher in a quiet small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Mighty Sanze, the empire whose innovations have been civilization’s bedrock for a thousand years, collapses as its greatest city is destroyed by a madman’s vengeance. And worst of all, across the heartland of the world’s sole continent, a great red rift has been been torn which spews ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries.
But this is the Stillness, a land long familiar with struggle, and where orogenes — those who wield the power of the earth as a weapon — are feared far more than the long cold night. Essun has remembered herself, and she will have her daughter back.
She does not care if the world falls apart around her. Essun will break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.”
“You aren’t just inflicting death on your fellow villagers, of course. A bird perched on a nearby fence falls over frozen, too. The grass crisps, the ground grows hard, and the air hisses and howls as moisture and density is snatched from its substance…but no one has ever mourned earthworms.”
N.K. Jemisin’s first novel, The Fifth Season, in The Broken Earth series is an example of masterful and innovative storytelling that spellbinds readers from start to finish. This is the first time that I’ve read a book where a substantial portion of the novel is written in second person. While I wasn’t sure this would work, especially considering the other two perspectives included in the novel are told in third person, I quickly fell in step with this point of view. Jemisin has a way of weaving all three perspectives into one cohestive story that had me wanting to turn back to the beginning and experience the whole thing over again. Jemisin’s world is complex and I’m in awe of how much information she is able to provide the reader in this first book without it feeling overwhelming. Essun is the first character we are introduced to and we’re immediately put in her shoes as a mother who has just discovered her child has been killed. The young Damaya offers a more naive perspective and through her chapters, her and readers’ disillusionment about the world is shattered. Syenite puts readers right in the middle of a powerful, but troubling institution and it is here where readers learn the full scope of terror for people living in this world. I loved how there are different types of people and beings (for lack of a better term) in this world that all have distinct functions and whose relationships with one another help shape this world. The Fifth Season launches readers into a world that is both fascinating and frightening with characters that are impossible to forget. Special shout out to Annemieke @ A Dance With Books for the great buddy read.
Rating: 4/5
★★★★
Title: The Poet X
Author: Elizabeth Acevedo
Series: N/A
Pages: 357
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: March 6th 2018
“A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own relationship to the world. Debut novel of renowned slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.
But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about. With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself.
So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.
Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.”
“Late into the night I write and
the pages of my notebook swell
from all the words I’ve pressed onto them.
It almost feels like
the more I bruise the page
the quicker something inside me heals.”
Elizabeth Acevedo stuns with her debut novel The Poet X. Xiomara is easily one of the most relatable protagonists I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. For fifteen-year old Xiomara, having strangers and most especially men, draw conclusions about her based on her body is nothing new. She’s developed a thick skin because she knows the only one who will fight for her is herself. Hardly one to express herself openly, Xiomara is just beginning to find her voice in the poetry she writes. Her relationship with her parents is complicated. There is unspoken resentment and anger. Xiomara is trying to discover who she is and what she believes while also trying to please her devout mother. Her father is physically present, but emotionally distant. Her twin, Xavier, whom she’s always been closed to, is slowly pulling away, dealing with his own battles. Acedvedo’s writing is honest and poignant. With each page turned, I grew more and more invested in Xiomara’s story. Her journey to find her voice in a world that wishes to suppress it is both beautiful and devastating. Acevedo’s novel in verse put me through a range of emotions from happiness to heartbreak and in the end left me feeling deeply moved.
Rating: 5/5
★★★★★
Novels written in second person tend to come from the post-modernism camp. Some people feel like it’s gimmicky, but I think it’s helpful in leading the reader though the story as if he/she were the main character, even if the main character is NOTHING like the reader. There’s an uncanny closeness in the reading experience, but that also means it doesn’t work for a lot of narratives.
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It really was an experience. I’m really curious to see what she does (did, because she already wrote it) with the sequel. I might just peek inside right now.
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Don’t forget, you’re on a book buying ban! (I think–is that you?).
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I’d be in big trouble if I was. I am on a library ban, so maybe you’re remembering that.
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Oh! Yes! I feel like the library can be worse. I have no restraint in a library, but I have SOME in bookstores.
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I’ve been curious of The Fifth Season… and now knowing that parts of it are written in second person intrigued me. I also like the sound of the characters helping shape the story. I’ll definitely give this a try at some point 🙂
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I did not expect to like second person as much as I did, but I think it might have been my favorite POV in the novel.
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The Fifth Season really was such a great read. ❤ Thanks again for doing the buddy read with me.
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Thank you too!!!
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I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed The Fifth Season! I’ve owned it and read ~50 pages, but I haven’t been able to continue yet. I’m hoping to finish it soon, and reading your review made me excited to continue!
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It really helped to have someone to read it with. Being able to discuss it along the way was one of the main reasons I enjoyed it so much.
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That’s great to hear that you really loved both of these. I’m SO excited about The Poet X. It sounds amazing and I’ve been hearing really good things. I definitely need to read that one now.
-Lauren
http://www.shootingstarsmag.net
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The Poet X was so beautiful. I cannot express how much I loved Xiomara and Acevedo’s words were so poignant.
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I absolutely loved The Fifth Season – I just finished it on audiobook (in my review I may not be able to spell anything…) – and I’m dying for the sequel!
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Haha, I never really thought about the fact that audio can prevent you from spelling things right. They should come with character/setting guides.
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I loved The Fifth Season as well! I did find it a bit confusing and slow at the beginning but it ended up being great. 🙂
The third book is on my TBR but I haven’t got to it yet…
Dinh@Arlene’s Book Club
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The prologue was really confusing, but by the time I understood what was going on, I wanted to turn by the pages and read it again. I have the second on my shelf, so hopefully I can get to it soon.
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I am a fan of The Poet X. I loved the emotion, and the power of Xiomara’s words, but I also really liked that Acevedo gave each character an ending. I didn’t think she would do that, so it was a pleasant surprise.
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Acevedo’s novel was amazing. My relationship with poetry has always been emotional and she kept filling me up with her words.
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