Review of When the Tamarind Tree Blooms

[Manpreet_Kaur_]

[Following is a volunteer review of "When the Tamarind Tree Blooms" by Elaine Russell.]

---

5 out of 5 stars

---

Share This Review

---

TW: Sexual abuse

The story is centered around Genevieve, a metis (in French), meaning mixed. She had a mixed heritage with a French father and a Lao mother. The story is set in 1931, when she turns 18 and officially steps out of her French orphanage. She learns how the world was harsh to people of mixed heritage and refuses to acknowledge them as equal to the French. She seeks a job right after to survive in the world. She learns about her family origins and her twin brother and resolves to find them.

Genevieve never explored the world outside the orphanage. She encounters the dangers of being a beautiful young girl, but also the adoration of being one at the same time. It began with how young boys and adult men everywhere annoyed her and approached her rudely. How frightening it was for her, a young girl, just out of the strict and sheltered environment of an orphanage.

She experiences and discovers the meaning of love, friendships, family, yearnings, trauma, dreams, responsibilities, and grief. The world seems overwhelming, but she manages to find refuge in one or another support system whenever she faces a new challenge. It is one of those books where I forget to keep a check on pages read or left in the book and just flow through the story with all my interest and attention. It was interesting from the beginning, which only increased with each chapter. However, the story turned out to be completely different and heavy, which was unexpected. 

There were also mentions of wars and how the soldiers present in wars yearned to get back to their families. But to their and their families’ despair, a majority of them could not reunite. It also focuses on the orthodox system of royal Lao families and how the coming generation stepped up to protest against it. 

The author succeeded in creating a storyline worthy of complete interest. I had a little difficulty keeping up with the French words, but in the end, it made the book enriching. I think this book is filled with raw and young emotions as experienced by Genevieve. Therefore, I do not think there was any negative aspect of the book, and I accepted it as presented by the author. I was amazed by how few grammatical errors were in the book. The editor did a fabulous job. I gave this book five out of five stars. 

******
When the Tamarind Tree Blooms
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes | on Smashwords