RED AT THE BONE by Jacqueline Woodson
★★★★☆
Riverhead, 2019
In Red at the Bone, a quick, engrossing, fairly plotless read, Jacqueline Woodson dissects the anatomy of a family. She’s able to skillfully distill a collection of lives down to their bare essentials, without anything feeling rushed or underdeveloped, a feat in a book that’s scarcely 200 pages. The novel is narrated by a handful of characters and centers on Melody, a teenage girl preparing for her coming of age ceremony in her family’s home in Brooklyn. The narrative then weaves in and out of the past and present, in short, readable chapters, all pervaded by a sense of nostalgia and melancholy.
At times I found Woodson’s writing a tad overwrought (here I will cite the most obvious offender: WHY do authors feel compelled to have characters narrate their own births – has anyone else noticed that this is a growing trend?!). However, on the whole I found that subjects were navigated with deftness and subtlety – the chapter in particular which introduces a major world event I found positively gutting.
The downside of short, punchy books like this is that they never tend to leave much of a lasting impression on me, and I doubt Red at the Bone will be an exception in the long run, but I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with it.
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You can pick up a copy of Red at the Bone here on Book Depository.
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Okay, but seriously. What is up with characters narrating their births? I’ve noticed it a bit lately, but haven’t seen anyone else express it—glad that it’s more of a trend and less of a coincidence in my book choices. Great review!
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(stupidly late comment, sorry!!) IT IS ABSOLUTELY A TREND. I think it’s the third time this year alone that I’ve encountered it?! Not the first time by a long shot but I definitely think it’s becoming more of a thing lately… and it needs to end immediately.
Anyway thank you!!
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Nice review.
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Thank you!
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Characters remembering their own births; it’s revolting and so are we ✌🏼
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WE HATE TO SEE IT!
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I don’t remember the character narrating their own birth part, but maybe it’s because the novel hasn’t really stayed with me either, even if I did remember enjoying it. But I usually hate it when I see it—it’s right up there with “And it was all just a dream”. Great review!
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(sorry for the late reply!) Thank you! Yeah it’s definitely not a very memorable book – I saw someone refer to a twist at the end only a week after I finished it and I thought ‘wait, what twist?!’ Which is too bad because I did have a great time reading it (birth scene aside – you’re lucky you don’t remember it!)
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Perhaps the plotlessness was why this didn’t gel as an audiobook for me? I found myself so unenthused by it that I just gave up.
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Oh that’s so interesting, because the only other Woodson I’ve read (Another Brooklyn) was on audio and it has to have been one of the most forgettable reading experiences of my life.
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I haven’t noticed a trend of characters narrating their own births but if it is, that’s terrible! As someone who has given birth – there is a very good reason we don’t remember our own births!
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It’s SO TERRIBLE! As someone who has not given birth… I’m good without that level of detail, lol!
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It’s better not to know…
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I’m glad this doesn’t sound terrible!
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I have read another of her novels and though I really enjoyed reading it, it’s true that it didn’t leave a lasting effect on my memory.
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Yes I had the same experience – I’ve also read Another Brooklyn but don’t remember a single thing about it!
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