A review by minimicropup
How to Love a Jamaican by Alexia Arthurs

emotional informative lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I liked all the different perspectives and the slice of life feels woven throughout these stories.

Mood Reading Match-Up:
Fragrant soup. Brooklyn streets. Sea kissing shore. Plantain and bread and eggs. Mermaids. Coconut drops. Cornmeal porridge. Rotting pears. Clean air. Singing. 
  • Stream of consciousness essays and memories
  • Random(ish), open-ended, or ambiguous conclusions
  • Slice of life snapshots
  • Nostalgic, existential, reflective vibes
  • Morally grey characters
  • Social commentary and struggles 
  • Jamaican (and Caribbean) culture
  • Emotional lives of diverse people from children to young adults to elders
  • Reflecting on family dynamics and relationship decisions
  • Vignette style short stories

Content Heads-Up: Racism (colourism, discussion/debate, bias). Eating disorder (bulimia). Sexual assault (groping; very brief off page). Sexual content (consenting; brief on page). Homophobia (character comments, discomfort). Miscarriage (very brief off page). Loss of a child, grief. Adult/minor relationship. Cheating, infidelity (brief mentions). Double standards, hypocritical gender roles. Breast cancer (on page, mention). Body shaming (character opinions; fat, skinny, short, flat). Classism (prejudice, bias, rejection). Domestic abuse. Drug use.

Rep: Jamaican. Jamaican-American. Black and White Americans. Chinese-American. Second generation culture. Cisgender. Heterosexual. Gay. Lesbian. Bisexual. Dark, brown, light, coffee, albino, red, and pale skin tones.

📚 Format: Kindle

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