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This Mournable Body
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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review
psalva
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

Photo: NPR Interview, 2020. I got the point of this, but at the same time I felt a sustained sense of discomfort while reading due to the combination of Tambu‘s self-centered actions and the unceasing “you” which points the finger back towards the reader. It wasn‘t a pleasurable reading experience. However, the author has lived an incredible life and stood up for what she believes in, and I really admire what she tries to do with her writing.

Graywacke I‘ve enjoyed your reviews of this trilogy. This is a tough one. Especially because the first two were mostly pleasant reads (despite the rough stuff). 1y
psalva @Graywacke Thanks! Part of me wonders how her perspective might have changed between the publication of the first book in the 80s and the other two in 2006 and 2020. I feel like those events must have impacted how Tambu‘s character developed through the series. I‘m glad I stuck with the trilogy though. 1y
Graywacke @psalva yes, I‘ve wondered too. It‘s very personal, but also has a reflection of Zimbabwe‘s history of optimism and then financial collapse (and stifling under Mugabe) 1y
10 likes3 comments
blurb
psalva
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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This has been a difficult read for me but I didn‘t want to bail. So, in the hopes of finishing this today, I went for a walk and did some outdoor reading at a local park/forest. I‘ve got about 50 pages left. My plan is to spend the rest of the afternoon with the cats and finish this up. Hwaiting!

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psalva
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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“Everything is nice and fresh now…” I am enjoying this book more than “The Book of Not” so far. I had to get used to the change in POV, but there is more plot happening and Tambu‘s character, though increasingly unlikeable, is taking actions which are driving towards what I suspect is a doomed conclusion. I‘m very interested to see where this goes. I suspect it will be a tragic conclusion.

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psalva
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Being in the perverse habit of reading 17 books all at once, I‘ve started this, ignoring my mile high stack of nonfiction and each of the taunting bookmarks sticking their tongues out at me. I‘m seeing mixed reviews from other readers so we‘ll see how I fair.

jlhammar That sounds very familiar. Glad I‘m not the only one! 2y
psalva @jlhammar You are not alone. 2y
9 likes2 comments
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Tonton
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
review
Singout
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
Bailedbailed

I just could not get through this one: it was too bad, because I found the elements of Zimbabwean history and culture intriguing, especially as I have a childhood memory of news of the revolution. However, the second person voice, the main character‘s bitter life, and the somewhat disjointed narrative were just too much for me.
#ReadingAfrica2022 #Zimbabwe

Librarybelle I have a hard time reading second person narratives as well. 2y
10 likes1 comment
review
Graywacke
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Pickpick

This an uncomfortable book. After building up our hero, Tambu, in two terrific novels, Dangarembga essentially tosses that away. Zimbabwe is not such an easily wrapped place and her previous construct is here, maybe intentionally, undermined. This is not a Tambu you‘re going to like, nor will you like seeing her struggles from inside your own head in a 2nd person narrative. I‘m partially horrified and partially impressed. A difficult read.

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Graywacke
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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This poor book gets hammered on Litsy. But the first two books of the trilogy were fantastic and this is on the 2020 Booker, so plowing through. (No opinion yet, except there‘s a lot of filth). I‘m hoping to finish before the 2021 Booker longlist is announced.

BookishMarginalia When I was in college (30 years ago!) I used to love the Booker prize books — my taste aligned well with the judges‘. That has not been true in the last decade or so… I‘m not sure if I changed or the judging changed, but now I can pretty much guarantee that books the Booker judges love I will pretty much hate. Oh well. 3y
Graywacke @BookishMarginalia yeah, i hear that. I‘ve only been trying to read or listen to the longlist in 2019 and 2020. I loved the 2019 list - although I didn‘t like the co-winners. The 2020 list hasn‘t been as good - but still rewarding (well, I think. I haven‘t gone over the list yet though. I‘ve read 9 and the prequels for the two that are part of trilogies. I have this and another going.) 3y
BarbaraBB I‘ve been a Booker fan for years but 2019 and 2020 were a bit disappointing imo. 3y
See All 7 Comments
Graywacke @BarbaraBB huh. Hopefully better this year. But I really did get a lot out of 2019. 3y
BarbaraBB I admit I still need to read Ducks but I was enormously disappointed by The Testaments. I enjoyed Girl Woman Other but the rest of the shortlist not so much. And my favorite, Lost Children Archive, didn‘t even make the shortlist 🤷🏻‍♀️ 3y
Graywacke @BarbaraBB The Testaments wasn‘t even very good. Uncomplicated, under-thought out, and undermining a classic in the The Handmaiden‘s Tale. But Lost Children Archive was terrific. Frankisstein was so fun. And The Man Who Saw Everything was quietly brilliant. Quichotte was fun, as was Orchestra of Minorities. Ducks was, for me, mostly a curiosity. But also moving… I think I just kinda ranted. 3y
Suet624 @BarbaraBB Lost Children Archive. Sigh. So good. 3y
35 likes7 comments
review
Kaag
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Pickpick

Written in the second person, set in post colonial, post war Zimbabwe you find the female narrator facing incredible challenges. It can be a bit challenging to read but not overwhelming. The main character isn‘t likable in the traditional sense, unless you read the first two books you have to read between the lines to see why the character is as she is. I found myself compelled throughout and learning about a culture very different from my own.

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Pinta
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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^^ the second-person narration takes some getting used to (still not sure it works) but serves as both a distancing & call for empathy. Again, in above, the drop into poetic imagery at the end, description of a conflict & then BOOM the umbilical cord, the homestead, tugging. The way hard things are buried, left unsaid then said obliquely.

Book is WORK to read, but then, how do you describe a wrecked postwar society, a defeated protagonist?

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Pinta
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

Tambudzai‘s fierceness from “Nervous Conditions” now crushed by harsh working life in Harare, but still she hallucinates hyenas. Hard to see a character you 💜 get so disillusioned, failed promise of education & employment. Global capitalism, women & work, individualism, violence against women, family. Hard read, wandering narrative & despairing, hardened MC, but glimpses of the youthful Tambu I loved. End, circling back to homestead= killer. 2018

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Hooked_on_books
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

I would echo what other readers say about this book: slow going, jarring switches of point of view in the writing, etc. In print, I have no doubt that I would have bailed. That being said, by the end I felt like maybe there‘s something to this. If I were a rereader, I would go back again at some point to see if that glimmer materialized into something else.

vivastory I bailed on this one which is very rare for me to do 3y
45 likes1 comment
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ChaoticMissAdventures
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Bailedbailed

Not surprised, as it has pretty bad reviews, but I always hope to be the one that "gets" an author. Not here.
Honestly I spent 5 chapters trying to figure out what was going on, then 6 trying to just go with it until I remembered I had 2 other books I was enjoying and bailed.

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Abailliekaras
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Bailedbailed

I liked the natural writing style and sense of place, but did not get on with this one. The second-person narration was off-putting and the main character is glum and dissolute (as best I could tell). I didn‘t understand what the point of the story was, ie what she wanted, why life was such a struggle, or the significance of other characters who randomly appeared. Slow pace & no dramatic tension. I wanted to love it but didn‘t have the patience.

BookwormM This is the last book in a trilogy I think you miss out if you try to read it as a stand-alone but yes it is depressing and doesn‘t get much happier 3y
Abailliekaras @BookwormM yes I think would be better to read them in order. For Booker shortlist purposes though it should work as a stand-alone. Will be interesting to see who wins! 3y
BookwormM I don‘t think the Booker judges understand that concept 🤣🤣tbh I hope Shadow King wins the others are sooo depressing 3y
33 likes3 comments
review
ReadingEnvy
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

Initial thoughts on this Booker Prize shortlisted title:

1. I wish I had time to read the first two books in this trilogy. This one morphs into a sometimes second person, on purpose because the author was trying to let the reader and herself have some space from it. I think the context of the first two would have aided my understanding of the family and town dynamics but I was pretty much there by the end. ⤵️

ReadingEnvy 2. The title comes from a Teju Cole essay that also helps out the novel in context - how many countries in Africa do I not even know the most recent news stories? I may know a bit more about Zimbabwe but only really from the 1960s and not much about what came after, and mostly from colonial perspectives. How hard it is to establish new industry, new systems, when the people needed to invest also lack any understanding....⤵️ 3y
ReadingEnvy 3. I think the ending really redeemed this novel for me but I must admit to struggling through it a bit otherwise. I may not have finished it so soon were it not unrenewable at the library!
3y
Abailliekaras I‘m reading it now but about to DNF. It just seems to plot along randomly with no purpose or interest. I‘m sure you‘re right and we should have read the guest two perhaps (but it‘s shortlisted on its own merits 🤷🏼‍♀️). 3y
ReadingEnvy @Abailliekaras any favorites to wi 3y
51 likes1 stack add4 comments
review
Kalalalatja
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

I‘m pretty sure most of the problems I had with this book, are because I couldn‘t focus on it 100%. That being said, I found this hard to follow. Apparantly, it is the second in a series, and there were a lot of references to experiences the MC had in the first book, which I didn‘t get. I had a hard time keeping track of the characters, and it felt like A LOT happened. I did like the focus on mental illness, but it wasn‘t enough for me

squirrelbrain I felt much like this too. I read one review that said it didn‘t matter that it was a sequel (I think it‘s actually the third in a series?) but it mattered to me as I couldn‘t understand some of it. 3y
Kalalalatja @squirrelbrain the third??? Then it is no wonder I didn‘t understand it all. I started to be annoyed by all the references to her time at the missonary school and characters I had no idea who were. 3y
squirrelbrain Yes, it lost me when Mai‘s niece moved in and I couldn‘t figure out if I was supposed to know her or not, or if the MC knew her from a previous book! 3y
CaroPi Yes is the third in the series. That is also why I will try to read the first two. Many people said that actually you understand more if you read the first two 3y
53 likes4 comments
review
BookwormM
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
Mehso-so

#BookerLonglist2020 Book 7

I had read the first part of this trilogy years ago but now I wish I had reread that and then book 2 before tackling this one another reviewer has mentioned that this book continues exactly where the last book ended so reading all 3 together would have made this a different experience.

That said I didn‘t enjoy this the 2nd person style didn‘t work 4 me

Full review here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3511108585

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squirrelbrain
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

#bookerlonglist2020

Well, this was hard work (did I expect anything else from a Booker nominee?!)

I also only realised part-way through that it‘s the third in a trilogy and I think that I missed parts of the storyline as a result.

Tambudzai is living in a hostel and reels from one humiliation to another, making the book dark and depressing. Some reviewers say it is a story of triumph but I can‘t see that myself. Not an easy read.

Cathythoughts Why do they pick books that are such hard work .... 4y
squirrelbrain And why do I decide to try to read them all @Cathythoughts ?! As if I don‘t already have enough books on the TBR list.... 4y
Cathythoughts Well done for reading it 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 4y
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TrishB I was going to buy this as it was the cheapest one on the list on kindle, but then saw it was part of a trilogy so escaped!! They are usually very hard work. 4y
squirrelbrain I managed to get it on Libby @TrishB so that‘s why I read it. I also have Redhead on Libby - other than that they‘re all a bit expensive at the moment.... 4y
TrishB They definitely are, when prices go down I may consider some based on reviews. 4y
AnneCecilie I‘m waiting on this from the library and have picked up that it‘s the last book in a trilogy. The judges haven‘t read the other two, so it should be able to stand on its own. You feel like it doesn‘t? 4y
squirrelbrain @AnneCecilie - there was one point where a character ‘arrived‘ and I felt like we were expected to know who she was, so I assumed she‘d been in a previous book. I also felt like I would have had more of a connection to the MC had I read her back-story. I would still give it a go though - you might feel completely different! 4y
70 likes8 comments
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Emilymdxn
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Hello friends! I have been very absent the past week and I‘m quite likely to be more absent the next couple - I just got back from a holiday in Scotland with almost no WiFi and now I‘ve started an intensive teaching course which is, to be honest, significantly more intensive than I was expecting already 🙃 above is what I managed to read while I was on holiday, what I manage in the next couple weeks with this amount of homework is anyone‘s guess!

Mitch I envy your Scottish holiday. It‘s one of my all time favourite holiday spots. We‘re holidaying in the back garden this year - which is nice. But it doesn‘t have mountains! 🤣 4y
Kalalalatja Summer in Scotland sounds wonderful! Good luck with your course 👍 4y
KVanRead Glad you had a lovely holiday. Good luck with your course! 4y
merelybookish Looks like a great bunch of reading! 4y
CarolynM Good luck with the course🍀 4y
68 likes5 comments
review
SW-T
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

Tambu‘s story was interesting, but the second person narration felt impersonal, even while the situations Tambu was exposed to were harsh. She struggles against racism, misogyny, and the effects of colonialism and reaches a breaking point. Nothing goes as planned or expected. Apparently book three of a series, though it works as a stand-alone.

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Emilymdxn
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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I am in Scotland! It‘s so exciting after all this time to be somewhere other than my flat and my parents‘ house. We‘ve come to stay with my boyfriend‘s dad and to go to the Isle of Arran together and I‘m so excited to be here. Hoping to get a lot of reading done!

TrishB Sounds fab 👍🏻 4y
BookmarkTavern That sounds lovely! Stay safe and have a wonderful time! ❤️ 4y
KVanRead How nice! Enjoy!! 4y
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Megabooks Awesome!! Enjoy your trip! 4y
Kalalalatja Enjoy! 4y
veritysalter Hope you have a fabulous time ♥️ 4y
OnlyYoo Have a great time! I loved Scotland. If you like sweets their sticky toffee pudding is so delish 4y
64 likes7 comments
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Tamra
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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I didn‘t realize this was part of a trilogy. 🤭 I‘ll probably read it out of order anyway. Anybody read it - should I wait?

charl08 The first book is amazing. I don't much worry about reading in order though. 4y
Tamra @charl08 it‘s on my TBR! 4y
58 likes2 comments
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AnimalRiotPress
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Pickpick

Finally finished. It was a good one, Littens. A bit weird, but very good.

43 likes1 stack add
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AnimalRiotPress
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Halfway through after just two days. This books is wild 🔥📚

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Billypar
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Mehso-so

Had the thing happen where you're halfway through, and you take a look at Goodreads and realize it's the third book of a series 🤦 But that didn't stop me from enjoying this for most of the way through- I think it works as a standalone. The characters are nicely drawn, and Tambudzai's path to prosperity takes some unexpected detours. Unfortunately the climax and ending felt forced and implausible, which was a bit of a letdown.

38 likes1 comment
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shawnmooney
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Bailedbailed

I suffered through the first two shitty novels in this trilogy so as to be all set to sink into this, the third one. Only to bail on it just short of the 50% mark. What a monumental waste of valuable reading time. If you want to read shapely, powerful fiction from this part of the world, go directly to NoViolet Bulawayo‘s We Need New Names and spare yourself the agony I just subjected myself to.

Gezemice Perhaps you want to try something light and easy for a change... you are bailing a lot! 5y
shawnmooney @Gezemice Oh, no I never read anything light and easy. Yuck. But I am reading half a dozen other absolutely fantastic books – stay tuned for those reviews! 😍 5y
LeahBergen I was thinking this might be a bail after you disliked the first two! 5y
CouronneDhiver Oh dear, that‘s a shame. Onward! 5y
Gezemice @shawnmooney Well, glad to hear that. Although light and easy can also be absolutely fantastic. It is not easy to do it well! 5y
37 likes5 comments
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Liberty
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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My weekend is all booked! My reading nest is stocked and I‘m ready for a weekend crash course in August 7th releases. What are you reading this weekend? 📚❤️📚

Simona My current book is 6y
TheBookKeepers This reading best looks awesome! I‘m reading 6y
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TheSpineView Finishing up Foundryside today. Then I plan to start on my BOTM backlog challenge by starting on Remains of the Day.📚 6y
TheWordJar My hold just came in at the library! 6y
ErinGoBragh1011 I have been in a reading slump lately so I decided to jump back in with something short-ish. But I have 6 BOTM books that I have yet to read. So when I am finished this, I am picking one of those at random. 6y
zzz 💜the kitty pillow 6y
DreesReads Never Ran, Never Will (galley); The Friend (tournament of Books summer challenge); and trying to catch up on a group read of The Water Margin. 6y
Nute Love your reading space. It looks like you‘re all set. I‘m reading 6y
Dragon I‘m reading an older Regency Romance by the inimitable Georgette Heyer 6y
Dragon Just realized that‘s a pillow not a real cat 🐱😂 6y
EchoCharlie How do you get through all the books you need to read so quickly? 6y
Liberty @EchoCharlie I sleep two hours a night. (Don‘t try this at home, kids.) 6y
RebL Local (to me) author. Makes me want to learn to sew and identify quality, trendy pieces. 6y
blondie That pillow is so cute! I'm possibly starting 6y
160 likes1 stack add16 comments
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Liberty
This Mournable Body: A Novel | Tsitsi Dangarembga
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Day 22 of the #Riotgrams Challenge: paperback stacks! A perfect chance to highlight the galley stacks in my office. Books are my life, and I love sharing titles because I want to help readers learn about as many books as I can, so they can find books that make them happy. ❤️📚☺️

Lizpixie The favourite view of a nosy parker bookworm🐛👀 6y
RebL Love the sentiment. I‘m going to share it with the teen reading ambassadors I work with. 6y
sbains1980 Thnx for the book love sharing! You have the best book taste! 😊 6y
133 likes4 comments