BOOK OF THE MONTH
The House of Eve
From the award-winning author of Yellow Wife, a daring and redemptive novel set in 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, DC, that explores what it means to be a woman and a mother, and how much one is willing to sacrifice to achieve her greatest goal. Eleanor and Ruby don’t know each other, but their journeys in education, love, and motherhood run parallel lines until they collide in the most unexpected way.
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Readers say *The House of Eve* by Sadeqa Johnson is a beautifully written, fast-paced historical fiction that vividly portrays the challenges faced by...
So good! Sadeqa really takes us THROUGH IT in these books, and the endings can only be classified as bitter sweet. I'm nervous to read her other works because I don't know if I can take It...but I'm going to read them anyway!
I really enjoyed The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson! Despite it covering very heavy subject matter I found it to be a quick read and easily fell into the world Johnson painted.
I do recommend checking the trigger warnings on this book as it does heavily deal with miscarriage, stillbirth, and infertility. The topics are handled in a compassionate yet realistic and heart wrenching manner and I think that is a testament to Johnson’s writing.
This book gave me so many things I want from historical fiction: I learned something new, was able to see the world through another person’s eyes, and connected with the characters. I especially loved Ruby and her storyline.
The only reason the book is not a five star read for me is because I wanted more resolution for the characters I’d come to be so attached to. To me, the ending felt rushed and a little too neatly settled for a book that covered such heavy and heartbreaking topics. Both Ruby and Eleanor experience real grief, pain, and loss - and the ending felt a little too neat and tidy.
But, this is a minor critique from me. Overall, I loved the book and would happily recommend it to others.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of The House of Eve. All opinions are my own.
I do recommend checking the trigger warnings on this book as it does heavily deal with miscarriage, stillbirth, and infertility. The topics are handled in a compassionate yet realistic and heart wrenching manner and I think that is a testament to Johnson’s writing.
This book gave me so many things I want from historical fiction: I learned something new, was able to see the world through another person’s eyes, and connected with the characters. I especially loved Ruby and her storyline.
The only reason the book is not a five star read for me is because I wanted more resolution for the characters I’d come to be so attached to. To me, the ending felt rushed and a little too neatly settled for a book that covered such heavy and heartbreaking topics. Both Ruby and Eleanor experience real grief, pain, and loss - and the ending felt a little too neat and tidy.
But, this is a minor critique from me. Overall, I loved the book and would happily recommend it to others.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of The House of Eve. All opinions are my own.
It was a good book to read while passing my time traveling.. not a page turner but a good story overall
This story is set in the 1950s in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. It follows the life of fifteen-year-old Ruby Pearsall, a bright girl who plans to go to college, and Eleanor, a married woman who hoping to have a baby. It is about women of color, prejudice, and the restrictions placed on women in this time period. It is mostly about women of color and the challenges they faced. It was hard enough being a woman in the 1950s constrained by societal expectations, but black women had it so much worse.
I found Ruby's secret love affair a bit unbelievable, given the time and the prejudice. I had heard about black women judging others in a negative light because their skin was lighter, but the extent of this behavior at Howard University surprised me.
The treatment of unwed mothers was horrific. It seemed a bit over the top for the twentieth century, I wondered how historically accurate the scenes depicted were. Even so, it was so much worse for black women. An interesting insight into what life might have been like for black women in the 1950s.
I found Ruby's secret love affair a bit unbelievable, given the time and the prejudice. I had heard about black women judging others in a negative light because their skin was lighter, but the extent of this behavior at Howard University surprised me.
The treatment of unwed mothers was horrific. It seemed a bit over the top for the twentieth century, I wondered how historically accurate the scenes depicted were. Even so, it was so much worse for black women. An interesting insight into what life might have been like for black women in the 1950s.
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