Looking for Lucie by Amanda Addison - #repost #blogtour #bookreview

 

Dad walks into the dining room carrying a showstopper of a cake. All eighteen candles flicker above the raspberry and pistachio topping...

"A work of art, Steve," says Nana Pat...

"Baking is pretty similar to building; cake for the bricks and cream for cement. Just on a much smaller scale!" laughs Dad...

***

Looking for Lucie is a contemporary YA novel that explores identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship as an 18-year-old girl sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history.

"Where are you really from?"

It's a question every brown girl in a white-washed town is familiar with, and one that Lucie has never been able to answer. All she knows is that her mother is white, she's never met her father, and she looks nothing like the rest of her family. She can't even talk about it because everyone says it shouldn't matter!

Well, it matters to Lucie and-with her new friend Nav, who knows exactly who he is-she's determined to find some answers.

What do you do when your entire existence is a question with no answer?

You do a DNA test.

***

To celebrate the release of this book in the US, I am reposting the book review that I originally posted in April of this year.

It is aimed at a secondary school-age audience, so roughly 11-18 year olds.  The main character, Lucie, has her eighteenth birthday at the beginning of the book, and she is on the cusp of going to university to study art. She is also having an identity crisis. She has never looked like her family, mum, step-dad and sister, Maisie. She is darker skinned and has always been unable to answer the question when people ask "Where are you really from?" and the answer, Norfolk, did not satisfy. Her mum has never talked about her biological father, and she is desperate to know more about him and his ethnicity. This leads her to secretly taking a DNA test. Lucie was a wonderful character and she was very easy to identify and engage with. I was rooting for her every step of the way.

The book moves along at an appropriate pace for the genre. There were some surprises along the way which kept the plot moving forwards nicely. 

The book considers what it means to belong, as well as personal identity and working out how we fit into our individual world. I enjoyed following Lucie's journey as she grappled with some of these questions.

The majority of the chapters are written from the perspective of Lucie and her new friend, Nav. Later in the book we also get to hear the viewpoint of Lucie and Nav's mothers. The multiple perspectives enable the reader to understand that family dynamics and how or where we belong are never simplistic. This book performs an excellent job of demonstrating that situations can be viewed differently, and will vary with each individual.

If you have a young person in your life, I suggest buying them a copy of this book... but I would have a sneaky read of it before you pass it to them! Both young adults and adults alike will adore this book, and I heartily recommend it.

ISBN:  978 1911107682

Publisher:  Neem Tree Press

Formats:  Paperback

No. of Pages: 272

About the Author:

Amanda Addison is an award-winning author of books for adults and children. Her writing has been translated into German, Greek, Italian and Ukrainian. Her picture book, Boundless Sky, was nominated for The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal, and her YA novel, Looking for Lucie, was listed for the Searchlight Writing Novel Opening Award. A graduate of Chelsea school of Art, her writing and artwork are inspired by travel, textiles, and the natural world. Amanda holds an MA in Writing the Visual and lectures in Art & Design and has also led workshops in Creative Writing at the National Centre for Writing. Amanda lives in Norfolk, UK, with her family.

Her writing includes flash fiction, short stories, picture books and novels. She explores themes of home and belonging, and enjoys using the juxtaposition of rural and city life. Her characters are often artists or scientists, as their curiosity about the world around them are two sides to the same coin, and the exploration of art and science can give us meaning and purpose in life with its infinite avenues of discovery. Amanda’s debut YA novel, Looking for Lucie, Neem Tree Press 2024, explores the above. It is a contemporary story of identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship. Lucie, an 18-year-old art student sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history with her new scientist friend Nav. Together they unravel family secrets.

Amanda believes in the power of stories as a window on the world, and a mirror to better see ourselves and is passionate about stories which are empowering and inclusive. When not writing she can be found swimming in the North Sea or running in the countryside, and that is when she gets some of her best ideas!

Looking for Lucie by Amanda Addison - #bookreview #blogtour

 

Dad walks into the dining room carrying a showstopper of a cake. All eighteen candles flicker above the raspberry and pistachio topping...

"A work of art, Steve," says Nana Pat...

"Baking is pretty similar to building; cake for the bricks and cream for cement. Just on a much smaller scale!" laughs Dad...

***

Looking for Lucie is a contemporary YA novel that explores identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship as an 18-year-old girl sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history.

"Where are you really from?"

It's a question every brown girl in a white-washed town is familiar with, and one that Lucie has never been able to answer. All she knows is that her mother is white, she's never met her father, and she looks nothing like the rest of her family. She can't even talk about it because everyone says it shouldn't matter!

Well, it matters to Lucie and-with her new friend Nav, who knows exactly who he is-she's determined to find some answers.

What do you do when your entire existence is a question with no answer?

You do a DNA test.

***

Publishing on 18th April, you only have to wait a couple of days to be able to get your hands on this fantastic book for young adults. Having said that, it has been many years since I could call myself young, but I enjoyed every word of this book. 

It is aimed at a secondary school-age audience, so roughly 11-18 year olds.  The main character, Lucie, has her eighteenth birthday at the beginning of the book, and she is on the cusp of going to university to study art. She is also having an identity crisis. She has never looked like her family, mum, step-dad and sister, Maisie. She is darker skinned and has always been unable to answer the question when people ask "Where are you really from?" and the answer, Norfolk, did not satisfy. Her mum has never talked about her biological father, and she is desperate to know more about him and his ethnicity. This leads her to secretly taking a DNA test. Lucie was a wonderful character and she was very easy to identify and engage with. I was rooting for her every step of the way.

The book moves along at an appropriate pace for the genre. There were some surprises along the way which kept the plot moving forwards nicely. 

The book considers what it means to belong, as well as personal identity and working out how we fit into our individual world. I enjoyed following Lucie's journey as she grappled with some of these questions.

The majority of the chapters are written from the perspective of Lucie and her new friend, Nav. Later in the book we also get to hear the viewpoint of Lucie and Nav's mothers. The multiple perspectives enable the reader to understand that family dynamics and how or where we belong are never simplistic. This book performs an excellent job of demonstrating that situations can be viewed differently, and will vary with each individual.

If you have a young person in your life, I suggest buying them a copy of this book... but I would have a sneaky read of it before you pass it to them! Both young adults and adults alike will adore this book, and I heartily recommend it.

ISBN:  978 1911107682

Publisher:  Neem Tree Press

Formats:  Paperback

No. of Pages: 272

About the Author:

Amanda Addison is an award-winning author of books for adults and children. Her writing has been translated into German, Greek, Italian and Ukrainian. Her picture book, Boundless Sky, was nominated for The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal, and her YA novel, Looking for Lucie, was listed for the Searchlight Writing Novel Opening Award. A graduate of Chelsea school of Art, her writing and artwork are inspired by travel, textiles, and the natural world. Amanda holds an MA in Writing the Visual and lectures in Art & Design and has also led workshops in Creative Writing at the National Centre for Writing. Amanda lives in Norfolk, UK, with her family.

Her writing includes flash fiction, short stories, picture books and novels. She explores themes of home and belonging, and enjoys using the juxtaposition of rural and city life. Her characters are often artists or scientists, as their curiosity about the world around them are two sides to the same coin, and the exploration of art and science can give us meaning and purpose in life with its infinite avenues of discovery. Amanda’s debut YA novel, Looking for Lucie, Neem Tree Press 2024, explores the above. It is a contemporary story of identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship. Lucie, an 18-year-old art student sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history with her new scientist friend Nav. Together they unravel family secrets.

Amanda believes in the power of stories as a window on the world, and a mirror to better see ourselves and is passionate about stories which are empowering and inclusive. When not writing she can be found swimming in the North Sea or running in the countryside, and that is when she gets some of her best ideas!

(book and media courtesy of The Write Reads)

(all opinions are my own)

Reading Roundup for April 2023

 April has definitely begun to feel more like spring. There has been a good mixture of sunshine and rain. It is making everything in the garden grow like crazy and we have even had a few days when the weather has been kind enough to enable us to get out and tackle the weeds which are making themselves known.

The highlight of my month was going to the theatre in Eastbourne to see author, Tracy Borman, in her roadshow, How to Be a Good Monarch. It was a fantastic show and if it is showing anywhere near you then I highly reccomend it.

Have you done anything exciting or interesting this month?

Have you read any good books? I have read a mixture of the great, the good and the average this month.

Books I Have Read

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart - This was a re-read for me and it was every bit as brilliant as the first time I read it.

Ascension by Oliver Harris - This was the choice of my book group this month. The majority of the group really liked it. It was a good book, well written for it's genre but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

The Little Venice Bookshop by Rebecca Raisin - I read this as part of the book tour and enjoyed it very much. You can read my review by clicking here.

Night Wherever We Go by Tracy Rose Peyton - This was an excellent book, set in Texas in 1852. Well worth reading and you can read my review by clicking here.

The Wonderland Murders by Millie Ravensworth - This cosy crime mystery was an easy read and part of another book tour. You can access my review by clicking here.

The Viscount's Daring Miss by Lotte R. James - A lovely bit of escapist reading and you can access my review by clicking here.

The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions by Jonathan Rosen - This non-fiction title was really interesting. It's difficult to describe in a few words so please read the full review by clicking here.

Ada's Realm by Sharon Dodua Otoo - This was a complex novel which took a little working at. It was extremely good though and you can read my review by clicking here.

The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed - This was my favourite book this month and I cannot say enough good things about it. Please read my full review by clicking here.

Foxash by Kate Worsley - I only finished reading this yesterday but I plan to get my review written today ready for uploading tomorrow.

Caring Conservationists by Kate Peridot - Another book I finished only yesterday and my review will be up by the end of the week.

Books I Am Partway Through

Henry VIII: The Heart and the Crown by Alison Weir

Through Three Rooms by Sven Elvestad

James I: The King Who United Scotland and England by Keith Coleman

Night Wherever We Go by Tracey Rose Peyton - #bookreview

 

In the coming year of our Lord, the 1852 Farmer's Almanac predicted four eclipses, three of the moon, one of the sun. It said nothing of torrential rain. No prophecies of muddied fields or stalks of cotton so waterlogged and beaten down the bolls grazed the earth.

By the time the hot Texas sun made its return, glaring its indiscriminate and wanton gaze, it was much too late. The cotton wouldn't mature, instead choosing to rot right there, the bolls refusing to open. It held back the white wooly heads that were so much in demand, and instead relinquished a dank fungal smell that remained trapped in the air for weeks.

***

An intimate look at the domestic lives of enslaved women, Night Wherever We Go is an evocative meditation on resistance and autonomy, on love and transcendence and the bonds of female friendship in the darkest of circumstances.

On a struggling Texas plantation, six enslaved women slip from their sleeping quarters and gather in the woods under the cover of night. The Lucys―as they call the plantation owners, after Lucifer himself―have decided to turn around the farm’s bleak financial prospects by making the women bear children. They have hired a “stockman” to impregnate them. But the women are determined to protect themselves.

Now, each of the six faces a choice. Nan, the doctoring woman, has brought a sack of cotton root clippings that can stave off children when chewed daily. If they all take part, the Lucys may give up and send the stockman away. But a pregnancy for any of them will only encourage the Lucys further. And should their plan be discovered, the consequences will be severe.

Visceral and illuminating, Night Wherever We Go marks the arrival of a bold, lyrical and powerful new voice in fiction.

***

This book is set in Texas in 1852 where six enslaved women are faced by the prospect of being impregnated by a 'stockman', brought to the plantation by its owner in order to increase his slave numbers and rescue his failing plantation. 

It put me in mind of The Handmaid's Tale, albeit one is set in the future and this  is set in the past. However, both deal with the issue of the forced impregnation of women. At least, we can hold out hope that the future will not bring anything even approaching this very disturbing image. Sadly, the same cannot be said of the past and any book which deals with such a bleak time in history does not make for easy reading.

However, what elevates this book is the close friendship the women form in order to protect themselves from pregnancy and consequently deny the plantation owner his aim. 

There are some very powerfull scenes in this book. However, the camaraderie between the six women and the small chinks of light they are able to find in their lives make for an excellent read. The author is a gifted storyteller and writes with conviction and confidence.

Ms. Peyton has given us an excellent debut novel and if this is anything to judge by then she is one to watch. 

ISBN: 978 0008532840

Publisher:  The Borough Press

Formats:  e-book, audio, hardback

No. of Pages:  304

About the Author:

Tracey Rose Peyton received her MFA from the Michener Center for Writers at University of Texas-Austin and her BA from Howard University. She’s an alum of VONA/Voices, Callaloo, The Writer’s Institute at CUNY, Sackett Street, and Tinhouse and has received fellowships from Hedgebrook and Saltonstall Foundation for the Arts. Her short fiction has appeared in Guernica, American Short Fiction, Prairie Schooner, Best American Short Stories 2021, and elsewhere. She lives in Los Angeles, California.

(ARC courtesy of NetGalley)

(author photo and bio. info courtesy of the author's website https://www.traceyrosepeyton.com/about)

The Fortune Men by Nadifa Mohamed - #bookreview

 

'The King is dead. Love live the Queen.' The announcers voice crackles from the wireless and winds around the rapt patrons of Berlin's Milk Bar as sinuously as the fog curls around the mournful street lamps, their wan glow barely illuminating the cobblestones.

The noise settles as milkshakes and colas clink against Irish coffees, and chairs scrape against the black-and-white tiled floor.

Berlin hammers a spoon against the bar and calls out with his lion tamer's bark, 'Raise your glasses, ladies and gentlemen, and send off our old King to Davy Jones's Locker.'

***

Mahmood Mattan is a fixture in Cardiff's Tiger Bay, 1952, which bustles with Somali and West Indian sailors, Maltese businessmen and Jewish families. He is a father, chancer, some-time petty thief. He is many things, in fact, but he is not a murderer.

So when a shopkeeper is brutally killed and all eyes fall on him, Mahmood isn't too worried. It is true that he has been getting into trouble more often since his Welsh wife Laura left him. But Mahmood is secure in his innocence in a country where, he thinks, justice is served.

It is only in the run-up to the trial, as the prospect of freedom dwindles, that it will dawn on Mahmood that he is in a terrifying fight for his life - against conspiracy, prejudice and the inhumanity of the state. And, under the shadow of the hangman's noose, he begins to realise that the truth may not be enough to save him.

***

This compelling novel, which is based on factual events, is an outstanding book and one of the best I have read this year. Set in 1950's Tiger Bay, Cardiff it exudes with atmosphere and highlights the racial injustice suffered by the main character, Mahmood Mattan and his contemporaries.

I particularly enjoyed reading about this melting pot of characters who have settled in Tiger Bay from other parts of the world. This mixture of nationalities and faiths culminated in the occurrence of racial tensions, and it was this that led Mahmood to come to be in the position he did.

This character driven novel permits the reader to follow Mahmood through his time living and working in Tiger Bay, to his imprisonment for a murder which he did not commit. Despite his life experience, Mahmood seemed to have a naivety about him and had complete faith that the British justice system would come to recognise the truth of his situation.

I found this to be a heartbreaking read, written with sensitivity, intelligence and humanity. It was a calm, appropriately paced, devastating novel.

Every now and then, a novel comes along which I feel privileged to have read. This was one such book and I applaud the author for bringing this miscarriage of justice to prominence in the form of her novel.

It is no surprise to discover that the book was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Costa Novel Award in 2021, as well as the Wales Book of the Year Award in 2022.

I can foresee myself re-reading this book again in the future, and I most definitely want to read other titles from Ms. Mohamed.

I thoroughly recommend that you read this book and hope that you enjoy the reading experience as much as I did.

ISBN: 978 0241466957

Publisher:  Viking

Formats:  e-book, audio and paperback

No. of Pages:  384 (paperback)

Purchase from Bookshop.org

About the Author:

Nadifa Mohamed was born in Hargeisa (now in the Republic of Somaliland) in 1981 and moved as a child to England in 1986, staying permanently when war broke out in Somalia.

She lives in London and her first novel, Black Mamba Boy, based on her father's memories of his travels in the 1930s, was published in 2010. It was longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction and the Dylan Thomas Prize and shortlisted for the John Llewellyn-Rhys Memorial Prize and the Guardian First Book Award. It won the 2010 Betty Trask Prize.

(author photo and bio. info. courtesy of GoodReads)

Ada's Realm by Sharon Dodua Otoo - Translated by Jon Cho-Polizzi - #bookreview #socialblast

 

During the longest night of the year, blood clung to my forehead and my baby died. Finally. He had whimpered in his final moments, and Naa Lamiley had caressed his cheek. How lovely, I had thought, that this would be his final memory. She lay just beside him, the child between us, and her head resting next to mine. Naa Lamiley's eyes shimmered as she assured me it would not be much longer now, "God willling". She whispered because all of our mothers were sleeping on the other side of the room, but Naa Lamiley's voice would have given out at any moment anyway. Together, we had cried and prayed at my baby's side the last three nights. I could barely hear her, and I understood her even less. While she caressed him, she had stared at me, as if surprised by my confusion...

***

WHERE IS ADA?

In a small village in West Africa, in what will one day become Ghana, Ada gives birth again, and again the baby does not live. As she grieves the loss of her child, Portuguese traders become the first white men to arrive in the village, an event that will bear terrible repercussions for Ada and her kin.

WHEN IS ADA?

Centuries later, Ada will become the mathematical genius Ada Lovelace; Ada, a prisoner forced into prostitution in a Nazi concentration camp; and Ada, a young, pregnant Ghanaian woman with a new British passport who arrives in Berlin in 2019 for a fresh start.

WHO IS ADA?

Ada is not one woman, but many, and she is all women - she revolves in orbits, looping from one century and from one place to the next. She experiences the hardship but also the joy of womanhood: she is a victim, she offers resistance, and she fights for her independence.

This long-awaited debut from Sharon Dodua Otoo paints an astonishing picture of femininity, resilience and struggle with deep empathy and humour, with vivid language and infinite imagination.

***

The actor, Paterson Joseph has described this book as "a time-travelling wonder of a read…” and I have to agree. There were many things that I enjoyed about this debut novel from Sharon Dodua Otoo.

The writing is beautiful with a lyricism that is poetic. There were times I stopped and re-read passages simply because they were so perfectly constructed.

It has a unique narration in that much of the story is told from the perspective of a series of inanimate objects, each of which is connected to Ada in different time periods; a broom, a UK passport, a door knocker as well as a series of other things.

Ada is meant to represent all women and the trials and tribulations that we all suffer. She is a reincarnation of herself through the centuries, and are all linked through time by a bracelet which appears in an exhibition during the modern age.

The narrative was not linear and I found this a little confusing at times. The novel is complex in its construction, and although I liked it I was a little perplexed by it at times.

However, as a debut novel I was impressed. It is true I had to work at understanding this book, and I suspect that different readers will take away alternative views of what it was about. I would love for you to read this and let me know your thoughts.

ISBN: 978 1529419016

Publisher: MacLehose Press

Formats:  e-book, audio and hardback

No. of Pages: 320 (hardback)

About the Author:

Born in London in 1972 to Ghanaian parents, SHARON DODUA OTOO is a political activist and novelist living in Berlin. After having published several newspaper articles and two novellas in English, she wrote a short story in German which was later awarded the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize (2016), one of Germany's most renowned literary awards. She is politically active with several civil rights organisations, including the Initiative Black People in Germany (ISD), a Black queer feminist organisation called ADEFRA, and Phoenix. Ada’s Realm is her first novel.

 

About the Translator:

Jon Cho-Polizzi is a freelance literary translator and Assistant Professor of German at the University of Michigan, with Korean and Italian-Jewish roots. He received a PhD in German and Medieval Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, where he was managing editor for the online academic journal TRANSIT. His translations have appeared in the Jewish Museum Berlin, the Maxim Gorki Theater, taz, Jewish Currents, renk Magazin, Versopolis Poetry, and Der Spiegel, as well as in numerous anthologies. He lives and works between Ann Arbor, Northern California, and Berlin.

(ARC, author photo and bio. info. courtesy of the publisher)