Switching character perspectives could be abrupt and confusing in the beginning. Told through 3rd person narration but switches views to multiple characters throughout the chapters. We mainly hear from 4 main characters: Chola, Mchere, Catherine, and Nambe.

Most intrigued by Chola’s chapters, looking at the Malawi political landscape, as opposed to Mchere and Nambe’s home life especially with how violent and uncaring Mchere can be at times towards Nambe.

The beginning was very slow going and then the last third felt so rushed to wrap up the story. There could also be too much telling over showing at times. Most of the book explores class differences and political turmoil as dissidents (also called Subversives) are arrested, imprisoned, and tortured. 

Overall it was an interesting exploration of resistance in post-colonial Malawi but was not the easiest, most engaging read despite its short length.