Mini Review: Assembly by Natasha Brown
3***
Though Assembly is a short book, almost more of a novella, it pulls you in from the start and does not let go until the last page. In a quiet way, the story meditates on what it means to be a woman, a British woman of color, in particular, through the lens of colonialism, class, feminism - via moments that seem small and inconsequential but are far from it. It is very intentionally provocative, and while the writing is elegant, especially for a debut, I found it, at times, to be a bit too forced (as though it is trying very hard to be "literary", if that makes sense). It is intimate, and at the same time detached, which prevented me from really connecting to the character. Since this is not a plot-driven story, I felt the fact that the character was so distant, prevented me from being as moved as I hoped to be, even as I was engaged from start to finish. Assembly is not an easy read, despite its brevity, but it is still worthwhile and I am curious to see what the author comes up with next.
Comentarios