Official Review: Catfish by Madelyn Bennett Edwards

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Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha
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Official Review: Catfish by Madelyn Bennett Edwards

Post by Chigozie Anuli Mbadugha »

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Catfish" by Madelyn Bennett Edwards.]
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4 out of 4 stars
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Catfish by Madelyn Bennett Edwards is a historical fiction novel set in the 1960s in Louisiana. It explores themes such as the slave trade, domestic violence, racism, and miscegenation. It tells the story of forbidden love in first person narrative from the viewpoint of the female protagonist Susie Burton. Susie struggles to find love at home and make friends in school. She finds love and acceptance outside her race and family in unexpected and forbidden quarters.

The author, Madelyn Bennett Edwards, writes about very sensitive and challenging themes with an uncommon degree of maturity and tact. She presents issues in a non-judgmental manner and allows readers to draw their conclusions from the different perspectives discussed. The language and dialogue were realistic and appropriate for the 1960s. The author appears to have done detailed background research on the subject matters.

Madelyn explores the theme of the slave trade by weaving in stories of past events. The character Catfish, from whose name the title of the novel was derived, told these stories. The account of the family upheaval during the slave trade era and the physical and emotional torture associated with the separation of mothers from their children was heart-rending. I remembered that a few months ago, young children of illegal immigrant parents were being separated from their parents in the USA because of immigration policies this time, not slavery. Thankfully, these policies have been amended to stop the separation of families.

The twists and turns in this story were unexpected. I did not see the final twist in this story coming, and when I read up to that point, I was numb and unable to read further for a while. The characters were well-rounded and likeable. Some changed positively in the course of their journeys. Others remained the same and never became better people. I liked Susie, and I found myself hoping that she would find happiness and true love to compensate her for the pain and abuse she endured. Susie’s quest for acceptance will appeal to young people struggling to find friendship and love in their lives today.

I enjoyed reading this book very much. I learned a lot about the difficulties faced by African-Americans who lived in the slave trade and post-slave trade era. I feel that though there has been a great deal of progress in the areas of tolerance and integration of people from different races and nationalities, there is still room for improvement. I found only four grammatical errors, even though I was actively looking out for them. Therefore, I believe this book was professionally edited. I have no hesitation in rating this book 4 out of 4 stars because it was a well-written book. This book is better suited for adult readers because of the seriousness of the themes it explored and the subtle descriptions of intimate interactions.

******
Catfish
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stacie k
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Post by stacie k »

I’m rooting for Susie, too! It sounds like an emotional read since you became “numb and unable to read further for awhile.” I’d like to learn for about life in 1960’s Louisiana. Great review!
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Post by Ruba Abu Ali »

What a captivating read! You caught my attention and got me into reading this one. Thanks for the lovely and in-depth review.
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Post by Sahani Nimandra »

I like a book full of surprises as this. There is so much to expect from this read, great character, great plot, great story setting and more. Thank you for your review!
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Post by Marissa Michael »

While reading your review of this book, it reminded me of this book '12 Years a Slave' by Solomon Northup about the free black Americans like Solomon himself was kidnapped and sold to be made slaves in southern parts of the USA like Lousianna.

You got me on this part: "...It tells the story of forbidden love in first person narrative from the viewpoint of the female protagonist Susie Burton. Susie struggles to find love at home and make friends in school. She finds love and acceptance outside her race and family in unexpected and forbidden quarters." I'm into anything romantic attracted to different things. Thank you for your intriguing review.
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Post by AmySmiles »

This sounds very interesting, but not one I am likely to put on my reading list. I'm glad you were able to enjoy it. Thanks for the review.
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Post by kfwilson6 »

"The author, Madelyn Bennett Edwards, writes about very sensitive and challenging themes with an uncommon degree of maturity and tact. She presents issues in a non-judgmental manner and allows readers to draw their conclusions from the different perspectives discussed." This is absolutely key when writing about topics such as race issues and slavery. Not to mention the book is well researched. Excellent review. I'm sure those interested in 1960's Southern Louisiana history would enjoy it.
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Post by Fu Zaila »

Lovely review. I'm dumbfounded at the way you describe your emotions throughout your read. I'm intrigued.
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Post by JR Mercier »

This sounds wonderful. I love that the author allows the reader to draw their own conclusions and didn't try to browbeat the reader.
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Post by Allyseria »

Thank you for the review! I'm excited to read this book - I'm already rooting for Susie! It sounds like an interesting book and I love that the author doesn't push his opinions on the readers :tiphat: Definitely going on my to-read shelf :D
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