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At the ripe old age of 8, she picks her favourite country - Burundi - based solely on the sound of its name, well. This beautiful novel is told alternately by Augusta Hope, living in England, and Parfait from Burundi. The Other Half of Augusta Hope is a stunning debut novel, full of emotion and heart and I think it will be one of those books we will be talking about for the rest of the year. She’s also fascinated by Spain and is determined to live there once she finishes university so it’s only a matter of time before her path will cross with the young refugee from Burundi who has lost everything he holds dear. We also hear from Parfait, a young boy living in Burundi who at first seems quite random, how will he fit into the story?
After a tragedy, Augusta finally flees her parents home and goes looking for another home, a place where she can be herself. I found the writing to be very lyrical as though the author is an artist just like Parfait and some sections really stand out for the exceptional quality of prose regarding Augusta and julia’s relationship. Thank you for reading my review and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, it would be perfect to pack in your case for your summer holiday.She loves the dictionary and is fascinated by Burundi a country she first came across spinning a globe as a child. Augusta escapes the constraints of her conventional, rather narrow-minded family to go to university, where she shines. It is also quite informative and I now know a little about a country I had never heard of before reading this book.
The quirky style of writing took a bit of getting used to but right from the start I found it an interesting read. In Glen’s debut, shortlisted for the Costa first novel prize, at first it’s Augusta’s twin sister, although the differences between them become more marked as time passes. At first I didn’t feel much of a connection to her, the same as most people around her, but she grew on me and in the end I found it very hard to put this book down.It’s a coming of age story with a difference and has everything from love and romance to tragedy and family breakdowns. Their lives weave in and around each others and the reader assumes that one day they will meet and their worlds will collide together. The characters of Augusta and Parfait are so well drawn (Augusta in particular, Parfait is slightly less 3 dimensional, though still a real person) and the way Joanna has drawn the threads of their very different lives together, weaving coincidence into a believable whole is beautifully done. I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from HarperCollins/HarperFiction via NetGalley.
I felt like this was a novel of our times and raises some important questions about identity, belonging and asylum.
I loved her interest in the world, wanting to find out and explore, see the world beyond her boundaries. We are taken to Burundi as well, a little known African country, which has captured Augusta's interest from a young age, and meet Parfait and his family, caught in a country suffering from bloodshed.
A strangely compelling debut novel, Kingdomtide begins when the elderly – but never frail – Cloris survives a plane crash in the Bitterroot mountains in Montana.Some of this book is set in a small town in England, some are set in Burundi and the rest in Tarifa in Spain. They are very different people, Julia beautiful and ready to please, Augusta different, quirky, a little offbeat. Parfait and Augusta don’t know each other until almost at the end of the story, but we follow Parfait’s life alongside Augusta’s.
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