don't read
OK, just finished The Darling by Russell Banks. It's about an American woman who flees her revolutionary past (think 60's Weather Underground) and ends up in Liberia, married to a Liberian man.
Doesn't it seem to have all the elements of a book that I would love?
Instead, not a single character was in the least bit sympathetic. They were all despicable. And Banks got everything wrong about Liberians - from the concept of being isolated and alone there to bad sex with Liberian men (I've never heard of such a thing!) to racial issues. Sure, the racial issues exist - but one of the reasons I love West Africa is that they aren't so codified like they are here. Sure, people see I'm white when they meet me, but then it's a non-issue.
Banks never even went to Liberia - which is really obvious. And he clearly can't count any Liberians among his friends, because he knows nothing about them.
Blah. Waste of my time. And some really brutal passages I didn't need put in my head.
Doesn't it seem to have all the elements of a book that I would love?
Instead, not a single character was in the least bit sympathetic. They were all despicable. And Banks got everything wrong about Liberians - from the concept of being isolated and alone there to bad sex with Liberian men (I've never heard of such a thing!) to racial issues. Sure, the racial issues exist - but one of the reasons I love West Africa is that they aren't so codified like they are here. Sure, people see I'm white when they meet me, but then it's a non-issue.
Banks never even went to Liberia - which is really obvious. And he clearly can't count any Liberians among his friends, because he knows nothing about them.
Blah. Waste of my time. And some really brutal passages I didn't need put in my head.
posted by NOLA at 10:45 PM
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