The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
My heart was not ready. This was my first time reading The Kite Runner despite owning the book for many years. This book is guaranteed to hold your emotions captive from very early on. I damn near cried by chapter 10. Hosseini is an incredible storyteller, his ability to craft a complex narrative without losing the audience is unmatched. The book is equally triggering and inspiring. Definitely one of the best books I’ve ever read. I’d recommend this to anyone who has yet to read it and is looking for a page turner.
Dear Ijeawele, Or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
I won this book in a Twitter competition run by FABA Books, an independent bookstore specialising in African, Asian and Middle Eastern Fiction. Dear Ijeawele is a letter that advises how to teach feminism to your daughter. Honestly, it wasn’t one of my favourite Chimamanda reads but she raises some fair points about how we view gender and how this affects us. My favourite part is when Chimamanda reflects on women being expected to change so much of their identity when they marry (title, surname etc) yet men keep both those things and are still acknowledged as an individual first and husband/father second. I probably wouldn’t recommend this, but her other books, such as Half of a Yellow Sun, are great.
Salt – Nayyirah Waheed
Salt has been on my wishlist for a while and after reading Milk and Honey I decided to bite the bullet. I immediately fell in love with the matte white cover and minimalist design, I’m afraid to take it out the house in case it gets dirty! I feel unqualified to share my thoughts on this book as several of the poems went right over my head. Poetry isn’t my ‘thing’ and I often struggle to connect with it. Objectively speaking, Nayyirah has written some amazing and profound poems. One that really stands out to me is ‘the hurt,’ which reflects on self-love in the aftermath or abandonment. I’ll definitely revisit this and read it at a much slower pace in future…
Next month I’m looking forward to the release of two new books: Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge and No Place To Call Home by J.J. Bola.
What are you reading this month?