The Promise by Damon GalgutMy rating: 1 of 5 stars
The Promise, by Damon Galgut, 2021
2021 Booker Prize winner, The Promise is a depiction of the Swarts, a white family in post-apartheid South Africa. The death of the Swart matriarch borns a promise to gift the house to a servant that goes unfulfilled until the lives of the three siblings, Astrid, Anton, and Amor, wrestle through life events that shape their feelings of guilt or lack thereof. They are brought together over funerals over three decades, told in four chapters.
I found most of the characters unlikable, which is not to say is a bad thing, but unlikable without the depth of character to give reason is one of the reasons I did not care much for this book. The other reason is the writing style did not keep me engaged. I found the author's omniscient intrusions and "tell-not-show" made the read almost unbearable for me. I was very close to shelving this book under #DNF (did not finish).
I rate this book 1.5 out of 5 stars.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment