Reviews by Andrea (65)

Andrea 2024-01-10 A Stone most precious

Very Interesting True-Life Account

A Stone most precious

The cultural oppression of the Uyghurs occasionally attracts attention from the press, so it was something I was vaguely aware of before reading this book. Needless to say, it's a sad story. The author describes her life and the increasingly oppressive regime in which Han Chinese (China has many ethnic groups) strive to forcefully assimilate Uyghurs. Her escape to the US and subsequent attempts to raise awareness led to the imprisonment of friends and family. There are things she did that hurt others and which she blames others for - notably, her relationship with her first husband - and the language is noticeably not native English, but it's authentic, gripping, and filled with truths the world is largely oblivious to.

Andrea 2024-01-10 Crossroads

Soap opera. Tried twice. Gave up.

Crossroads

I guess the header says it all. It looked so much more interesting than it turned out to be. I usually finish a book in three days, but three weeks and two attempts saw me giving up to do something else. Then again, someone else may feel differently.

Andrea 2024-01-10 The Ink Black Heart

A very Entertaining Read - Once You Get the Hang of It

The Ink Black Heart

I honestly felt that this book didn't need to be as long as it was, that it needn't have so many characters, and that it was written by someone with only the most cursory understanding of games and gaming. In this sense, it wasn't completely believable - a close-knit gaming community for an iconic game all living within a few kilometers of one another and all with real-life relationships (this does not happen) - it was nevertheless worth reading. The in-game chats are the hardest, until you learn to read them consecutively while understanding that they occur in parallel. Enjoyed it all the same and (although this is what you do with books by definition) found it to be a page-turner. Should have been a bit shorter though: a bit too much about too little.

Andrea 2024-01-10 Dance on the Red-Brown Earth

History is a series of snapshots: whose land "belongs" to who?

Dance on the Red-Brown Earth

I'll confess to speed-reading this one. Yes, the whites took land that belonged to the Xhosas, but who did the Xhosas take it from? After all, they were migrants too. At the same time, I enjoyed the way it wove in the story of admixture between whites and Xhosas that certainly occurred and has been historically recognised - although its history goes back even further than this. Land and land grabs are a part of history no matter where in the world you may be, and before the one, there is another and another, and another. I think the book misses this point. It has a slight odour of white guilt, and although that's probably deserved, it fails to acknowledge that the Xhosa took the land from the Khoisan before that. And before that, heaven knows... No nation is without guilt

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