#16 Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord
Paama has grown tired of her husband Asigne’s gluttonous nature and selfish attitude, leading her to seek asylum at her parent’s 
home. Then Asigne arrives in town and plunges her life into chaos. Eventually, Paama manages to rid herself from him for good, but not without attracting the attention of the mischievous djombi, who see her as a perfect wielder for The Chaos Stick. Only the Chaos Stick’s former owner is not happy with this, and will do anything to get it back.
I have read plenty of novels that draw their inspiration from folk tales or fairy tales, but never one quite like Redemption in Indigo. This is due to the fact that the story was inspired by Senegalese folklore, a topic I am admittedly quite ignorant of. As a result, reading Redemption in Indigo was an informative experience on top of being a pleasurable one, as I was able to learn a little bit about the culture of another part of the world. The first thing that grabbed me about Redemption in Indigo is it’s use of an omniscient narrator. The lively voice chosen here is reminiscent of a storyteller, a decision that I find really suits folklore inspired tales, which often find their roots in oral tradition. The tone of the book mostly lighthearted, despite some dark moments, and is filled with satisfying humor. I often found myself smiling or laughing aloud, especially in the early chapters which focused on the problems that Asigne kept on creating for himself. The pace moves along quite briskly, making it a relatively quick read. There is also a lot more story than you’d expect to find in a novel of less than 200 pages.
Paama is a very clever, well drawn heroine. I found her reactions to many of the events in the novel to be very realistic. When something happens that is frightening, she reacts appropriately in fear. Interesting, I did not find these moments of weakness to weaken her as a character at all. Beyond Paama, Redemption in Indigo has it’s fair share of interesting and tough female characters, which I always enjoy. I also liked how she chose to develop the villains of the piece. Asigne, for example, is able to illicit both laughter for his silly actions, as well as sympathy. My one complaint about the book is that I wanted to view the setting a little more. Because of the quick natured writing, we don’t get to linger on the world around our characters very often. As a result, I struggled to visualize it at times.
Redemption in Indigo is a short and satisfying novel starring a likable heroine. I enjoyed the humorous tone of the novel, as well as getting to learn more about the folklore of a culture that I am not familiar with. I look forward to reading other books by Karen Lord in the future.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 188 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Other books I've read by this author: This is my first
Next I will be reviewing The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads
home. Then Asigne arrives in town and plunges her life into chaos. Eventually, Paama manages to rid herself from him for good, but not without attracting the attention of the mischievous djombi, who see her as a perfect wielder for The Chaos Stick. Only the Chaos Stick’s former owner is not happy with this, and will do anything to get it back.
I have read plenty of novels that draw their inspiration from folk tales or fairy tales, but never one quite like Redemption in Indigo. This is due to the fact that the story was inspired by Senegalese folklore, a topic I am admittedly quite ignorant of. As a result, reading Redemption in Indigo was an informative experience on top of being a pleasurable one, as I was able to learn a little bit about the culture of another part of the world. The first thing that grabbed me about Redemption in Indigo is it’s use of an omniscient narrator. The lively voice chosen here is reminiscent of a storyteller, a decision that I find really suits folklore inspired tales, which often find their roots in oral tradition. The tone of the book mostly lighthearted, despite some dark moments, and is filled with satisfying humor. I often found myself smiling or laughing aloud, especially in the early chapters which focused on the problems that Asigne kept on creating for himself. The pace moves along quite briskly, making it a relatively quick read. There is also a lot more story than you’d expect to find in a novel of less than 200 pages.
Paama is a very clever, well drawn heroine. I found her reactions to many of the events in the novel to be very realistic. When something happens that is frightening, she reacts appropriately in fear. Interesting, I did not find these moments of weakness to weaken her as a character at all. Beyond Paama, Redemption in Indigo has it’s fair share of interesting and tough female characters, which I always enjoy. I also liked how she chose to develop the villains of the piece. Asigne, for example, is able to illicit both laughter for his silly actions, as well as sympathy. My one complaint about the book is that I wanted to view the setting a little more. Because of the quick natured writing, we don’t get to linger on the world around our characters very often. As a result, I struggled to visualize it at times.
Redemption in Indigo is a short and satisfying novel starring a likable heroine. I enjoyed the humorous tone of the novel, as well as getting to learn more about the folklore of a culture that I am not familiar with. I look forward to reading other books by Karen Lord in the future.
Rating: four and a half stars
Length: 188 pages
Source: Lewiston Public Library
Other books I've read by this author: This is my first
Next I will be reviewing The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads