![]() Gifty, the narrator of Yaa Gyasi’s second published novel, is a 27 year old PhD candidate in neurosciences at Stanford, who conducts experiments on mice to elucidate the neural pathways involved in addiction and reward seeking behavior. ![]() ![]() ![]() One thing I would add is that the book contains details of animal experiments that may upset some readers. This is a very affecting book that continually leaves you engrossed and willing Gifty on to a happy outcome. It's no surprise to read at the end that Gyasi based it on a friend's experiences. Gifty and the other characters are so real, and the story is told with such verisimilitude, that this feels like reading a memoir. She can never quite do so completely without abandoning her mother in her own mind, which makes for a difficult quandary for a medical student. From an early age, Gifty was required to support her mother in crisis and, while the local pastor said that God never gives anybody a burden that they can't bear, Gifty is shattered by events, and abandons her mother's religion. She comes from a broken home, abandoned by her father, and riven by mental illness and tragedy. Gifty is a Ghanaian-American research neuroscientist, specialising in reward-seeking behaviour. * I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |