Review of Ironing

[Mmaduabuchi Eze]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Ironing" by Navajo.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Ironing by Navajo is a critical commentary on sexuality,interracial and interreligious relationships and marriage and the challenges therein, the worrisome state of Humanity, ideology, lifestyle, sexual assault and blunt self-defense. The story begins as the major characters, Ginie, Emma and Royanda board a London bus to go watch a dog racing show. The friends are greatly excited about the event. A greater part of the story is set on the London bus. During the journey, the trio, Ginie, Emma and Royanda are the centre of attention. They discuss several things, ranging from the misdeeds of boys in relationships to human nature. Some passengers in the bus found these topics interesting while others found them irritating. As the story unfolds, it is revealed that Emma and Royanda have suffered series of disappointments and emotional torture from their boyfriends and are at the verge of taking critical decisions. Could they be emotionally strong enough and open minded enough to realise that all men are not the same, or forever give up on men and adopt a different alien lifestyle?

The disjointed structure of the story made my reading experience quite delightful. The story is not divided into chapters; the narrative is varied between paragraphs. The author successfully tossed me back and forth the various and different characters and events. This removed the problem of boredom and sustained my interest till the last page was turned. Generally, the diction is simple. The novel could be read by anyone with basic knowledge of the English language without flipping through the dictionary to check the meaning of certain words. I was also impressed by the grammatically correct sentences and constructions used in crafting this literary piece. I did not notice any grammatical error in the novel. The novel was thoroughly well edited. I love the themes highlighted in this novel. They are invaluable and timely.

I do not find some informal expressions like "innit" used in the novel interesting. Other readers , however, may find them great and interesting.

I rate this novel 3 out of 4 stars. This decision is informed by my great displeasure in the occasional use of vulgar words in the novel. For me, these vulgar words reduced the aesthetic content of the story.
Without this, I would not have deducted one star from the rating. However, those who do not find such words offensive may be okay with the novel, and perhaps rate it higher than this.

Generally, Navajo has proved to be a master storyteller. The narrative style is unique and interesting.

I recommend this novel to only adults, especially those who are not much sensitive to vulgar words. This is because the novel contains several vulgar words that are not healthy for the consumption of young minds. I also recommend it to those who love dog racing show and those who are struggling to regain faith in relationships and marriage.

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Ironing
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[joyjoy22]

You have a masterly use of English and this makes your review interesting. I think I will like to read this book.