The book of memory

I enjoyed this book what a talent.i wish it was longer than how it was

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sad but interesting. not a gripping drama

slow moving but interesting and very sad. the ending let me decide. I like that.

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Wonderful

What a fascinating book. A slow start draws you in to a really interesting story absolutely brilliantly narrated. Highly recommend.

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Bravo!!

Triumphant ! Glorious ! Best book I’ve listened to a long time! Fantastically dramatised (beyond narration) by Chipo.. wow!!!

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A Book of Memory - Hardship and humour in Zimbabwe

A beautifully read, lyrical, simultaneously humorous and hard fictional story from Zimbabwe.

Memory, a young albino woman, is on death row in a Zimbabwean prison. She has been accused of murdering her white, gay, adoptive father and awaits execution. Weaving to and fro, current and past, memory and fantasy, she narrates her story and that of the people with whom she interacts.

Much of this novel is beautifully written, with often humorous asides, based in part on misreading accents, which in the most part are well rendered by the excellent narration. An aside on names is hilarious as is an exchange among prisoners highlighting how misinterpretation of legal processes may arise from varying accents and mispronunciation. Petina Gappah's legal background sensitively underplays the serious implications that can, and no doubt do, arise.

A core theme is the experience of marginalisation - most of it portrayed through the eyes, thoughts and experiences of Memory. She is an albino girl brought up in a community seeking to make sense of, and explain, misfortune. It is a story of 'othering' and of resilience and of the challenge of personal agency in ever-changing circumstances.

Memory cannot let go of the day that determined the rest of her life... It started with an unusual trip to the town together, rare in itself, followed by treat after treat - whatever and however many ice-creams she wanted. This was followed by meeting a while man, seeing him pass a wad of notes to her parents, and watching her mother grab and stuff them into her bra. It ended with her parents walking away, and Memory left in the company of a white man who absorbs her into his well-off life. Like many in the community, the reader wonders how this came about, and ponders the relationship between Memory and Lloyd...

Accused of killing her adoptive father (an injustice), Memory relives segments of her life and what we thought we saw becomes increasingly fuzzy.

Zimbabwe - a most beautiful but troubled land - is evocatively presented. Without overemphasising corruption or dictatorship, they lurk in the background shaping the day-to-day hard lives of people. The story, however, focuses on how these lives intersect, justice and truth are pursued, and how memory and recollection intervene.

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something a little different

enjoyed this very much and found it really well suited to the excellent marathon.
at times the language choices made it difficult to follow briefly
didn't see the twist coming at all

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Great story. Enjoyed the journey!

Expertly narrated story, traces parts of the Zimbabwean experience from different lenses and keeps you hooked throughout.

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Beautifully narrated

Captured me to the end.
Will search for more books by the author. Beautifully written.

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The book of Memory

Beautiful story beautifully read....slowly slowly we discover more and more about Memory , a young woman in Africa who is also albino, imprisoned for murder.
She is innocent of the crime, but only understanding her history do we understand how she came to be there.
The truth gradually emerges, her misunderstandings put right until she finally sees and we see what has happened. why it happened and that everything was born out of love.

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3 people found this helpful

Avant Garde. The much needed voice for Zimbabwe

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Most definitely. Petinah weaves a very interesting and captivating story. I very much liked the Theory of Memory that is invoked. We all know that memory is self serving and not always reliable Petinah shows this very well in her writing. Also made me think about A bit of Freudian Psychoanalysis thrown in for good measure. This is one book I would read over and over again.

What other book might you compare The Book of Memory to, and why?

Cant think of any right now

Did Chipo Chung do a good job differentiating each of the characters? How?

For the most part Chipo's dramatization of the story was great but I was quite disappointed in how she Europeanized Shona words. The accent was not authentic at all and yet I read somewhere that Chipo was Zimbabwean. She did well but could have done better

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

I would still use its title as its catchy enough and dies well to foreshadow the plot

Any additional comments?

I loved this book so much. It takes us on a journey of a young lady accused of murdering her adoptive guardian. The African or rather Zimbabwean justice system is clearly outlined and the protagonist's emotions adequately explored. The listener grows with Memory and is allowed to enter into her psyche so much that it becomes easy to forgive and love her for everything. The pace is fast but will captivate from start to finish. Very good book by all accounts. The best out of Zimbabwe for the longest time.

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