The Rest of You, Maame Blue
The Rest of You is a powerful story navigating Ghanaian Londoner Whitney’s search to unpack the childhood and family history she does not know or remember from her early years growing up in 1990s Kumasi. This expertly woven story spans three decades and four viewpoints, inspired by the Sankofa proverb ‘looking back in order to move forward’, navigating the deep roots of generational trauma.
Whitney’s narrative being written in the second person perspective creates a startlingly direct and immersive experience, albeit an initially jarring one that takes a moment to adjust to. It aligns with Whitney’s consistent disconnect from herself and those around her, always wondering what parts of herself she is missing. A rich characterisation is created as Whitney navigates her Ma’s frequent concealment of the truth, and her consequent struggle to open up to her closest friends. Whitney is such an easy character to root for, and one you constantly yearn to learn more about.
Every character in this novel has such a distinctive voice and set of experiences, all on their own journeys to reconcile with their pasts. Each timeline, from 1990s to present, is so beautifully curated with such stunning description. The order of the telling of these events was occasionally disjointed, but the writing in this book is truly beautiful, with such vivid and frequent imagery. Each perspective offers a fresh light on the situation, and a new array of emotions. This novel centres around friendship and family, and each connection is so believable and well-built. This is very much a character-driven story, with a lot of rumination on one’s identity and memories. The more you read, the more you want to uncover more.
This book does leave you with unanswered questions, some of which could’ve been answered to create a more satisfactory conclusion. However, this novel is full of hope and optimism, alongside its frequently harsh and unsettling topics, and is truly pleasurable to read. Despite being just 280 pages, The Rest of You packs a punch in its exploration of family, femininity, and connection.
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