Review of Sister B

[Anaïs Quesson]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Sister B" by David Charles Hart.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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"Don't let anyone make you a slave."

Sister B tells the story of Willie Mae, a black woman affectionately nicknamed Sister B by her family, born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi. In the late 30s, motivated by her grandmother's mantra about not letting anyone enslave her, this young mother decides to flee the South's racism and seek a better life for her family. She moves from Mississippi to California, and later Oregon. As she settles and starts her new life in Portland, Oregon, the narrator uses her life to explore major historical events from the 1940s to 60s. Sister B is a strong-willed woman who dedicated her whole life and fought for social rights and justice for all.
Across the Pacific Ocean, a second point of view follows the story of Akio Hashimoto, a young Japanese photographer. As Sister B leaves her hometown, Akio is enrolled by the Japanese Navy for some photography work. Their paths will cross aboard a train, somewhere on the American West Coast. How could such a meeting influence both of their lives, and what roles will they play in the war to come?

I have to admit I was not a big fan of Hart's writing style. His narration is very straight-forward, short sentences in present tense, with little to no description. Not saying it's badly written; it just fell flat for me.
I found the characters very dull, with no discernable personality; only Sister B's will to fight for equality and justice gave her a little more depth than the others. And still, some of her actions felt contradictory and unnatural: how could a mother move so far away and leave her family, including her two year-old son, behind?
The dialogues and action in general felt very unnatural and forced. I felt like it was not the characters' story, but they're just existing to live through the events Hart wants to tell us.
This is mostly why I took a few stars off my rating: I had a hard time relating to the characters and almost did not care about them.

Nevertheless, the book is extremely well-documented. The accuracy (?) of racism and hatred towards Black and Asian people was unsettling, but deeply instructive. I was deeply interested by the narration following Akio and exploring Japanese culture. I also learned a lot about the Pacific side of World War 2, things I was not really taught in school as a European. Once I overcame my discomfort with the writing, I was really invested in the story and wanted to know more and more.
Most of all, it is a moving tribute to a mother, to a woman who invested her own life to make the life of others better. It is a cry for freedom and equality.

In summary: if you're looking for a well-crafted historical fiction about World War 2 and social inequalities in the US, this would be perfect for you.
However, the narrating style was too unsettling for me to enjoy it —I would rate it 3 out of 5 stars.

******
Sister B
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Gerry Steen]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Sister B" by David Charles Hart.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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Share This Review

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"Don't let anyone make you a slave."

Sister B tells the story of Willie Mae, a black woman affectionately nicknamed Sister B by her family, born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi. In the late 30s, motivated by her grandmother's mantra about not letting anyone enslave her, this young mother decides to flee the South's racism and seek a better life for her family. She moves from Mississippi to California, and later Oregon. As she settles and starts her new life in Portland, Oregon, the narrator uses her life to explore major historical events from the 1940s to 60s. Sister B is a strong-willed woman who dedicated her whole life and fought for social rights and justice for all.
Across the Pacific Ocean, a second point of view follows the story of Akio Hashimoto, a young Japanese photographer. As Sister B leaves her hometown, Akio is enrolled by the Japanese Navy for some photography work. Their paths will cross aboard a train, somewhere on the American West Coast. How could such a meeting influence both of their lives, and what roles will they play in the war to come?

I have to admit I was not a big fan of Hart's writing style. His narration is very straight-forward, short sentences in present tense, with little to no description. Not saying it's badly written; it just fell flat for me.
I found the characters very dull, with no discernable personality; only Sister B's will to fight for equality and justice gave her a little more depth than the others. And still, some of her actions felt contradictory and unnatural: how could a mother move so far away and leave her family, including her two year-old son, behind?
The dialogues and action in general felt very unnatural and forced. I felt like it was not the characters' story, but they're just existing to live through the events Hart wants to tell us.
This is mostly why I took a few stars off my rating: I had a hard time relating to the characters and almost did not care about them.

Nevertheless, the book is extremely well-documented. The accuracy (?) of racism and hatred towards Black and Asian people was unsettling, but deeply instructive. I was deeply interested by the narration following Akio and exploring Japanese culture. I also learned a lot about the Pacific side of World War 2, things I was not really taught in school as a European. Once I overcame my discomfort with the writing, I was really invested in the story and wanted to know more and more.
Most of all, it is a moving tribute to a mother, to a woman who invested her own life to make the life of others better. It is a cry for freedom and equality.

In summary: if you're looking for a well-crafted historical fiction about World War 2 and social inequalities in the US, this would be perfect for you.
However, the narrating style was too unsettling for me to enjoy it —I would rate it 3 out of 5 stars.

******
Sister B
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

It is unfortunate that the style of narration was too flat for your taste. I hope that the author takes your comments into account to improve the story. It is interesting that the author mixes the topics of racial inequality in the South, and the Japanese culture during WW2. If I'm not mistaken, Godzilla was a Japanese symbol of the evil of imperialism and atomic war. I enjoy historical fiction, so I will add this book to my bookshelves. Thanks for the great review.

[Amy Luman]

I’m sorry that things in the novel did not feel real for you. It’s also too bad that you were not comfortable with the author’s writing style. I don’t think that this would be a book that I would enjoy. Thanks!

[Stephen Christopher 1]

I do love historical fiction, if it is truly historical, but these characters do sound a little one-dimensional and that's disappointing. With so many great historical novels out there, I'll skip this one.

[ZCReviews]

The premise of the story sounds very interesting—two different worlds colliding with a background of conflict and a fight for justice. But I don't think I would want to read the book based on your criticisms. It sounds a bit too clinical to me. I like books with a lot of descriptive language and strong character development. Thanks for your review!

[Julie Marie Basil]

It sounds like this story could have been great, but the execution was lacking. Thank you for your honest review!

[Kshitija Sonawane]

This sounds like such a good book. I'm so sorry you did not enjoy the narration of this book. However, I'm still glad you started getting invested in the story.

[Following is a volunteer review of "Sister B" by David Charles Hart.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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Share This Review

---

"Don't let anyone make you a slave."

Sister B tells the story of Willie Mae, a black woman affectionately nicknamed Sister B by her family, born and raised in Vicksburg, Mississippi. In the late 30s, motivated by her grandmother's mantra about not letting anyone enslave her, this young mother decides to flee the South's racism and seek a better life for her family. She moves from Mississippi to California, and later Oregon. As she settles and starts her new life in Portland, Oregon, the narrator uses her life to explore major historical events from the 1940s to 60s. Sister B is a strong-willed woman who dedicated her whole life and fought for social rights and justice for all.
Across the Pacific Ocean, a second point of view follows the story of Akio Hashimoto, a young Japanese photographer. As Sister B leaves her hometown, Akio is enrolled by the Japanese Navy for some photography work. Their paths will cross aboard a train, somewhere on the American West Coast. How could such a meeting influence both of their lives, and what roles will they play in the war to come?

I have to admit I was not a big fan of Hart's writing style. His narration is very straight-forward, short sentences in present tense, with little to no description. Not saying it's badly written; it just fell flat for me.
I found the characters very dull, with no discernable personality; only Sister B's will to fight for equality and justice gave her a little more depth than the others. And still, some of her actions felt contradictory and unnatural: how could a mother move so far away and leave her family, including her two year-old son, behind?
The dialogues and action in general felt very unnatural and forced. I felt like it was not the characters' story, but they're just existing to live through the events Hart wants to tell us.
This is mostly why I took a few stars off my rating: I had a hard time relating to the characters and almost did not care about them.

Nevertheless, the book is extremely well-documented. The accuracy (?) of racism and hatred towards Black and Asian people was unsettling, but deeply instructive. I was deeply interested by the narration following Akio and exploring Japanese culture. I also learned a lot about the Pacific side of World War 2, things I was not really taught in school as a European. Once I overcame my discomfort with the writing, I was really invested in the story and wanted to know more and more.
Most of all, it is a moving tribute to a mother, to a woman who invested her own life to make the life of others better. It is a cry for freedom and equality.

In summary: if you're looking for a well-crafted historical fiction about World War 2 and social inequalities in the US, this would be perfect for you.
However, the narrating style was too unsettling for me to enjoy it —I would rate it 3 out of 5 stars.

******
Sister B
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon