Children of Blood and Bone (Legacy of Orïsha, #1) in Pick-a-Shelf

Apr 12, 2020 Tehreem rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2020

I expected this to be just like the other fantasy books,guess that is why it took me so long to pick it up, i have read so far but this book was definitely so much more than that hence 4.5/5 stars.
Let me explain

Right from the start you come across phrases that hit pretty close to home, like when zelie compares her darker skin tone to the lighter one of the opponent that she is fighting as she comes from a privileged background. In Asian countries lighter skin tone is preferred and people are obs I expected this to be just like the other fantasy books,guess that is why it took me so long to pick it up, i have read so far but this book was definitely so much more than that hence 4.5/5 stars.
Let me explain

Right from the start you come across phrases that hit pretty close to home, like when zelie compares her darker skin tone to the lighter one of the opponent that she is fighting as she comes from a privileged background. In Asian countries lighter skin tone is preferred and people are obsessed with fair skin, due to this comparison it was hard for me to put the book down.

This book highlights the strong bond between tzain and zelie (brother and sister) and shows,repeatedly, that he would go to any lengths to protect her despite her careless attitude. I am a a sucker for such books.

The friendship that Amari had with Binta and how she copes with the lose of her one true friend makes this book sad and worth reading (though at times it is slightly over done). I like how Amari turns her loss and fear into courage to save her new friend Zelie and stands up for her and her cause.

Inan (Amari's brother) is a good person with a good heart, Tomi has an excellent way of showing us how some relation break us to the point where we would hurt ourselves just to gain their approval. I was sad and heartbroken for Inan he deserved a better end but i guess that is how the story ends if you don't recognize toxic relations and put an end to them when you have a chance.

There were so many things in this book that broke my heart but it also called my attention to something that i have never thought about, which is weird considering the war torn world that we live in. Although the writer was focused on, the violence that black people face just cause they are black when she wrote this book and though i see it in the news and on social media for me the loss of mama for Zelie resonated more with the kids living in war torn areas or kids who saw there parents being gunned down/dragged and murdered. It is heart breaking to see a child going through all the difficult phases of life without both or one of his/her parents.

Zelie says at the end of how she started hating her hair and her self cause of what people said about magic and maji is so true for people who face violence cause of their creed or get bullied for being different in any way in today's society.

I was a little surprised when Zelie reveals that maji/diviner souls who die a violent death remain on earth and go through the same pain over and over again unless a reapers helps them ascend them to Alafia but in a way we do see it. When we face trauma and violence of any sort sometimes we just can not move beyond that point and are forever stuck in that moment. Help is required in such moments to move on.

I don't think i have ever felt this much or related so many things from my own life to a book. Zelie though careless and quick to act is a strong character cause she is able to realize that the soldiers working for King Saran are just tools for the King's hatred and asks, the assassins she hired to travel to the island to not hurt them.

It could not have been summarized in a better way: we are all children of blood and bone.

(people might not related to book the same way i have or i may be completely wrong about this book but this is one of the amazing things about art, it is open to interpretation. ) ...more

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Dec 30, 2020 Lauren⁷ 💜 rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy-science-fiction, young-adult-teen-new-adult, favorites, library-has-a-copy

4 1/2 stars. I found this to have a rather slow and very clunky start which almost had me putting this down. But once this book got going? It got going and it got really good! I found the plot to be very gripping and I really liked all of the characters. But I think I most enjoyed the setting and the mythology used. I quickly realized that this book was set in kind of an alternate Nigeria and the author heavily utilizes multiple elements of West African mythology, religion, culture and language ...more

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Aug 18, 2019 emily rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, non-white-protagonist, audiobook, 2019, afrofuturist-afrocentric

I'm giving this four stars instead of three because it's a book that needs to exist in the world. Calling it a response to police murder of black people and citing the Black Lives Matter movement as inspiration, it's a powerful story of revolution and liberation that I appreciated very much for its uniqueness and the relatability of its narrators. The plot was nothing groundbreaking-- teenage girl goes on a quest to bring freedom to her people and falls in love along the way-- but I liked it. I ...more

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Aug 08, 2018 Kristina rated it it was ok

Shelves: eo-love-the-cover, read-in-2018, did-not-finish, fiction, fiction-fantasy, fiction-young-adult, fiction-adventure, z-the-chosen-one

I know this isn’t the most popular opinion. I didn’t love it. It seems like a great novel. I gave it a good effort, but it just wasn’t captivating me. Too many other books keep on calling my name. So I bailed.

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Oct 12, 2019 Lorna rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, fantasy, ala-best-book, fiction-multicultural

I believe the book deserves all the praise it has received this past year. Personally, it wasn't the book for me, but it was a good story and well written. ...more

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