Homegoing – A book that’ll give you all the feels

I’ve been contemplating writing about the last book I read, but every time I am thinking about what to say and how to say it I feel like I am not going to be able to do it justice. It made me laugh and cry and everything in between, so here is my best crack at it, hoping that someone else will pick it up.

I said previously that Call Me By Your Name is a must read and I still think you should read it, if you haven’t (before you watch the movie of the same name). BUT read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi first!

I must admit, it wasn’t an instant grab, a.k.a hooked from the first page or two, and you’ll definitely need longer chunks of time on a Sunday afternoon to really get into the stories, but once the book has you, it HAS you. You won’t want it to stop. You’ll want to know what happens to every person, how their story ends and where their daughter’s or son’s story picks up. You’ll savour every minute of reading it and get lost in the stories of generations.

I write about this book, as if it has some secret magic in it once you lay your eyes upon the first page. Not only is it an enjoyable read, as much as slavery and slave trading stories and fate’s consequences on several generations across two continents can be, but it is also an important one. I learned a bit, I felt injustice and I understood more.

When I realised that I was a couple of chapters away, I put the book down for a few days because I wanted to give the last pages the proper attention, the feels and expectation for a worthy ending to the ups and downs of everyone’s life story. I wanted to be able to soak it in without falling asleep afterwards (not that it would be boring, but cause I usually read before going to sleep.)

And let me tell you, it has an ending it deserves and it’ll make you feel whole again after the heartbreaking stories you’ll wander through. It’s definitely a ride, the story of “two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery, one a slave trader’s wife.” It’s a story of their descendants and following generations.