A Tall History of Sugar

More effort than I was willing to invest: jarring changes in narrative voice (third person to first and back) and style; impenetrable patois in crucial moments; inconsistent rules for the magical elements; and, ultimately, lifeless characters. A novel more about ideas than people.

I really wanted to love this book. I tried so hard, coming close to abandoning almost a dozen times, persevering each time. I tried switching to the audiobook — beautiful voice, enchantingly read, but no luck. Forbes writes beautifully, I loved getting wrapped up in her words, but I'm just not smart or talented enough to learn Jamaican at my age, nor am I kind enough to care about characters whose principal problems boil down to an inability to communicate and unwillingness to learn.