Book of Not: Stopping the Time

I really enjoyed this sequel to 'Nervous Conditions'. I did find the first chapter quite hard to make sense of at first (I'm still baffled slightly by Netsai's exploding leg), but once I got into it I found the narrative comlpetely captivating and was unable to put the book down. Darambenga is truly amazing at creating such life-like characters that I found myself completely immersed in Tambu's situation.
I would say that it is true that Tambu's voice is very different from her voice in 'Nervous Conditions', but that is a reflection of Darembenga's skill as a novelist rather than a criticism. The narrative follows Tambu's character and watches as it is morphed by the Western eduction that she is provided with. What we are left with at the end of 'The Book of Not' is a Tambu who has become completely alienated from her birth mother and the culture she was born into- whilst at the same time she is alienated from the Western 'white' culture that her education has attempted to initate her into.
A great book - completely unforgettable!

The Book of Not (3/4 people found this helpful)

So disappointing! I loved Tsitsi's first novel (Nervous Conditions), but - as is quite common, sadly - the sequel has little of the power of the first book. It seems ponderous and repetitive by comparison, and it is such a shame that - except for the excellent first chapter - so little of it takes place in the central character's home village. The acute gendered account of life in a Zimbabwean village was compelling in Nervous Conditions. Also Tambu's character is so much less engaging than in Nervous Conditions. You want to shake her so that she can rediscover something of her spirit and adventurousness from the first novel.
The most interesting aspect of this book is the portrayal of the war for liberation of Zimbabwe, which bursts into the narrative periodically. It is told with a fascinating even-handedness which will force many readers to re-assess their views of that struggle.
But overall it is a damp shadow of the earlier novel.

Thought provoking... (8/8 people found this helpful)

I bought copies of 'Nervous conditions' and 'The Book of Not' on the same day. I was captivated by the first book, and I could not put it down until I was done with it! The richness & insights of the book lied in the ever so engaging dialogues between Tambu and Nyasha... the power, strength and determination they showed proved to be inciting...when I turned to 'The book of not', I found it difficult to read... I could not recognise the voices of Tambu and Mai, Tambu's mother. Time had passed, and a war had started, but the change in the characters' voices I thought were more to do with the time the author (Dangarembga) took to write this sequel than to the characters' own development... Nevertheless, once again I did not close the book until I was done with it. The second is more incisive on the issues concerning colonization & post-colonization in this region of Africa... and all along I wished the spirit of that very young Tambu back in her homestead tending her corn would have been able to conquer all the absurdities of this world! I cannot wait for the next novel from Tsitsi Dangarembga (I once read it took her this long for she lacked a room of her own to write... I hope she has it now!!)

Tsitsi Dangarembga

Reader Reviews:

A great book! (3/3 people found this helpful)

The Book of Not (3/4 people found this helpful)

Thought provoking... (8/8 people found this helpful)

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