kerry reviewed Little Bee by Chris Cleave
Review of 'Little Bee' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
The voice of Little Bee, a refugee from Nigeria, is charming and compelling. The voice of her counterpoint, Sarah, is less so. This novel, told in chapters that alternate between Little Bee's and Sarah's points of view, tells how their lives intersect.
Maybe I liked Little Bee because she is "exotic," and therefore I don't really know what her life has been like; because of this foreignness, perhaps anything author Chris Cleave says seems right. On the other hand, Sarah, a young British magazine editor and mother, is someone I could know--and yet, she seems less "real." Yes, she's going through some personal traumas, but none so horrific as what Little Bee has experienced.
The novel started strong, but its power got diluted as events progressed. I almost put down this book after one of the refugees hangs herself early on. I almost quit again after we learn how Little …
The voice of Little Bee, a refugee from Nigeria, is charming and compelling. The voice of her counterpoint, Sarah, is less so. This novel, told in chapters that alternate between Little Bee's and Sarah's points of view, tells how their lives intersect.
Maybe I liked Little Bee because she is "exotic," and therefore I don't really know what her life has been like; because of this foreignness, perhaps anything author Chris Cleave says seems right. On the other hand, Sarah, a young British magazine editor and mother, is someone I could know--and yet, she seems less "real." Yes, she's going through some personal traumas, but none so horrific as what Little Bee has experienced.
The novel started strong, but its power got diluted as events progressed. I almost put down this book after one of the refugees hangs herself early on. I almost quit again after we learn how Little Bee and Sarah (and Sarah's husband, Andrew) met in Nigeria. I decided to stick with it, just to see how Cleave depicted the triumph of the human spirit. I mean, honestly, after describing such tragedy, isn't such a triumph just about required? Well, the triumph was muted.