Book Review | Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

 

Hey my lovelies, hope you are all well! Welcome back to Faith, Trust and Lots of Books for my second book review. Today we're going to be visiting Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams, a debut, coming-of-age novel which has been the "to read" book of Summer 2020. Grab your cups of teas and biscuits guys, it's going to be a good one!

Before we get into this review, I just want to start with a quick trigger warning as this novel broaches some difficult psychological and emotional topics, including: racial abuse, graphic sexual relationships (and not of the good type), and mental illness (depression, anxiety, eating disorders). I know that is an incredibly broad list and far too generalised, but if any of those topics make you feel uncomfortable then maybe give this one a miss.

Queenie follows the story of a young black woman, aptly named Queenie, as her life unravels and spirals out of control before the reader's eyes. The novel begins with a 'break' from her long-term (white) boyfriend Tom (which inevitably ends in a painful break-up), which we learn about via prolepsis/flashbacks and discover their relationship was tumultuous due to Tom's inability to stand-up against his family's casual racism. Queenie also experiences problems at work which just go from bad to worse. On top of an already difficult relationship with her mother, childhood trauma, friendship drama, and a lot of questionable relationships with men, all of this causes Queenie to develop a crippling anxiety disorder which forces her to move in with her grandparents. Described by Christie Watson as 'a masterclass in how to write accessible political fiction about race and gender', and Dolly Alderton as 'hilarious, compelling, painful, enlightening, honest', Queenie tells the eye-opening, ugly truths of what it is like to be a woman of colour in Western, contemporary Britain.  

In the current racial climate, this novel provides a brilliant insight into the intricacies and complexities of being a woman of colour in contemporary Britain, and can be a useful place to start for those wanting to read more into Jamaican British culture and literature written by authors of colour. Although not carried out in great detail, Carty-Williams makes reference to police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement (pp. 208-211). The almost passive mention of this is a definite nod to the "normalisation" of this behaviour at the minute, which in itself highlights the problem that not enough people are paying attention or being shocked by the way people of colour are treated not only in the US, but all over the world. The novel is incredibly inclusive, with characters of all races/religions (Jamaican, Jewish, British, Asian) written in the most beautiful way, therefore is a perfect representation of a multi-cultural, modern-day British society. 

Queenie has received a large amount of attention, both praise and criticism, since it's publication. Many readers have described it as a modern-day Bridget Jones's diary, which I have to strongly disagree with. Yes, this novel is extremely funny and heart-warming in parts, what with Queenie's girl group ('the Corgis'), their relationship dramas, and the hilarious depiction of her Aunt in just the first couple of pages. However, it does tackle very difficult and hard hitting topics, all of which (I would argue) are particular to women of colour. For example, Carty-Wlliams explores hair and the vital part this plays in women of colour's identities. She also explores how women of colour, especially those who society deems as "plus-size", are fantasised and fetishised by men of all races and religions, and the uncomfortableness this causes for these women. 

A lot of negative reviews of this book mention how Queenie can be insufferable and irritating at times, especially when she acknowledges that the decisions she makes are the wrong ones but carries them out anyway. But, I think this is part of what makes this novel so relatable and heart-warming. I think we can all agree we have probably made decisions which we know are not smart ones, but we do them anyway. For me, I loved this book because it felt like a journey. First it was a journey of loss of identity and self-destruction, as Queenie struggles to give herself the self-respect and self-care she deserves. Reading this as I enter my early 20's and a new, unknown chapter of my life, I really empathise with Queenie and realised that your 20's really can be some of the most challenging years of your life. You can feel lost if you lack a plan, and unexpected changes can happen (eg. end of long-term relationships) which just throw you off track. In this respect, the novel is also a journey towards self-love and acceptance, about cutting ourselves a bit of slack if we don't get it right the first time, second time, or maybe even the third. 

At the bottom of it all, Queenie is a beautiful story of self-growth and acceptance, which teaches us the importance of family, love, and allowing ourselves to be loved during it all. 

So, there we go my lovelies, a review of Candice Carty-Williams' Queenie. If this sounds like something you would enjoy then definitely add it to your list, and if you have read it then please leave a comment down below and let me know what you think, I would love to hear what you thought about it! 

Lots of love xoxo