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ClareR (6062 KP) rated Hold in Books

May 9, 2018

Hold

Michael Donkor | 2018 | Fiction & Poetry

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

A coming of age story

A coming of age story, set between Ghana and London, this is the story of Belinda, a housegirl, who moves to London to help the daughter of her employers friends. Amma (the friends daughter) has become withdrawn and is struggling with something in her life - not her studies though, she's a straight A student. She won't talk to her parents about it, and to begin with, it doesn't look as though she'll talk to Belinda either. Their friendship builds over a period of weeks and months. In this time, Belinda goes back to school in order to gain some qualifications. She seems to feel guilty of having left her fellow housegirl, who she refers to as sister (even though the 12 year old Mary is not her sister by blood, they have bonded over being in the same circumstances of separation from their families at young ages).
This novel explores African attitudes towards sexuality, family and responsibility. It's funny at times, but also incredibly moving. I really enjoyed it. We can see the contrast between life in a Ghanaian city and village, and the difference again between those places and London. A fascinating novel.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this fantastic book.