I ended up with both the digital and audio version of this book, but I finally finished it using the audio version. I used the other version for the pictures.

I’ve read one book by the author, one that introduced me to the country Guyana and its history. Prior to that I had no idea about its connection to my own country. As I listened to the early childhood section I was strongly reminded of that book. The author drew heavily from her own personal personality to shape the character(s) in that.

This is a memoir of a reasonably good childhood with parents who did not fall in line with the majority of the people of their time. As she grows up we also get to see the world around at that time.

I was more fascinated with the world and settings than the author’s narration unfortunately. I felt like I would have better appreciated the emotions if the book had been a little bit shorter. It was hard to understand where one should stand as a reader when the author talks of her mother and their relationship.

It is a memoir set in a time and place that I would have otherwise never known anything about. I would recommend this book to fans of the author, and want to know more about her past.

I received an ARC thanks to Netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own listening experience.

An interesting novel about the life of someone from Guyana, I have never read from a Guyanese author so that was unique. I think this book will appeal to a lot of people who enjoy history told in a personal way.

I found this book was fascinating, so interesting and I found it so educational to my journey, this is a fascinating insight into what it was like growing up in 1950s Guyana and then Boarding School in the 1960s. I particularly loved Maas’s memory for the smallest of details, it makes such a difference. I loved the evocative descriptions of Guyana, which are in stark contrast to the grey, and lifeless descriptions of boarding school in England, her life as one of the only non-white students and the book ends with Maas’s return to Guyana in the mid sixties. I found this to be a skilfully and beautifully written image of childhood in Guyana and England that taught me so much, not only about Guyana’s culture and history but Englands too. I definitely recommend this as a fascinating and enthralling look into a unique childhood

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This is an interesting and emotional memoir of a young girl from British Guiana who finds herself in the strange and challenging environment of an English boarding school. It documents her struggle for acceptance in a mainly white, upper class society in 1950’s Britain. Highly recommended.

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I picked this one up on Netgalley not knowing anything about the author or much about Guyana (or British Guiana as it is in the memoir).

The memoir follows Sharon through her young life in British Guiana and the separation of her parents during this time. Sharon then moves to a boarding school in the UK, after becoming obsessed with Enid Blighton books and horses. The memoir examines how Sharon felt being one of the only black children in the school.

I absolutely loved reading this memoir and felt it was made better but it not being someone I knew of and already had preconceptions about their lives. I would reccomend this to anyone wanting to read bit about British Guiana and migrating to a school in the UK not knowing anyone and only having been when they were a child.

3.5 stars

There are memoirs that read like personal journals, and then those that reach out to a broader audience through commentary or larger social issues. This one is a bit more insular than I prefer. In the first half, l would have liked to have learned more about Guyana and less about Mass’s family. I waited and waited for the title element: the English boarding school.

When Mass makes it to England, the book picks up significantly. Overall, this memoir is readable and solid. It didn’t keep me terribly captivated, but I can see it’s potential appeal.

Thank you to Sharon Maas, Thread Books, and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is a Memoir. When I read a Memoir I want to get totally pulled in, and I want the story to touch my heart. This memoir felt like a bunch of facts into a book, but I wanted more feelings behind the words. I enjoyed the first little bit, but after the first little bit it got heavy with facts and the emotions got lost in all the facts. This is not the worst memoir I have read, but it is not the best either. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Thread Books) or author (Sharon Maas) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

I don't usually like giving star ratings for mémoirs as how do you putting a certain amount of stars for somebodies life story. Unfortunately I can't give more than 3 stars, and to be honest, I skimmed the last 50% of the book so probably should give less. This book was so extremely detailed down to minutiae about the authors childhood, and honestly, most of it was boring childhood stuff that every child has experienced. It could have been 80% shorter and still managed to keep in the important details of their childhood.

The subtitle says it all – it’s the memoir of a Guyanese girl at a 1960s boarding school and her search for belonging. Sharon Maas was born in 1951 in Georgetown, Guyana – or British Guiana as it was then known – into a prominent political family. Her father campaigned for independence and her mother worked full time, often away from home, in an era when this was not the norm. Sharon grew up surrounded by her extended family, and was a clever child, who read voraciously, including many books about England and English boarding schools. She longed to go to one such school and her mother agreed to pay for her to do so. At this point the reader is conditioned to expect a tale of prejudice and discrimination but in fact Sharon was happy at the school and did well academically and socially, being accepted in spite of her colour. It’s a fascinating glimpse into life in 1950s Guyana and into life at an English boarding school in the 1960s, especially that as experienced by a black girl in a white environment so many miles from her home. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, but found I never really got to know Sharon Maas as the narration is curiously bland and unemotional. I can’t quite put my finger on where it is lacking, but I remained distanced throughout. Nevertheless I highly recommend the book for the portrait it gives of another country’s culture in a bygone era.

Thank you to the author, Thread Books and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As Sören Kierkegaard famously said, "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." and this memoir is a wonderful example of someone looking back at their life and reflecting on the things that shaped her into the adult she became. As a child of divorce, and with parents who were each unconventional but loving in their own way, the author tells the story of her childhood and young adulthood as someone searching for a sense of home and belonging. At the same time, she doesn't hide the childish selfishness that leads her to declare out-of-the-ordinary wishes and plans that must have put a strain on the resources of her family - but that also led to extraordinary loneliness on the one hand, and extraordinarily positive experiences on the other hand. The author has an open storytelling style, without artifice and as easy to read as though one were in conversation with her. I enjoyed the insights into the country of Guyana, which I was not familiar with at all beforehand, and the author's exploration of the issues of identity. I would have been interested to read more about how this impacted her as an adult.

A charming memoir about a young girl’s childhood in Guyana. I know next to nothing about Guyana so I found her story fascinating. She also had an unconventional childhood, with divorced parents. I enjoyed reading about her family, on both sides as well as her experiences in an English boarding school.
It’s a worthwhile read.

<b>Read Around the World: Guyana</b>

This was an excellent read that I enjoyed very much. The author has an easy writing style and her voice is engaging and intriguing [I will admit that I'd love to visit Guyana now] and the story was so good that I was completely enthralled from beginning to end. I loved learning about her family and life in Guyana, but the part that really intrigued me was when she left all she knew at age 10 to move to England to go to boarding school. I remember having to move from one state to another and starting a new school at 10, but I CANNOT even imagine moving that far, away from family and all that the author knew, to go to school. I admire her so much for wanting to do this and I truly admire her mother for making it happen [even though the author isn't aware of the huge sacrifice it was until many years later]. Overall, it made for some compelling reading and a story that I am grateful I read.

I have had the privilege of listening to Donna Berlin narrate before and I was really excited to see that she narrated this book. I was not disappointed. Her narration was just so on point and she really made the story come alive and really added to the whole experience. I am so grateful I got to have an audiobook for this excellent memoir.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sharon Maas, Thread Books, Thread Books/Bookouture Audio for providing the ARC and audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have always loved this authors books, so when I saw she had a memoir I really wanted to read it, and it didn't disappoint.
The book takes us through her childhood Growing up in British Guiana and her experiences in boarding school in England, and I could relate to a lot that she went through as we are of a similar age.
This was a very personal memoir, as it had a lot to do with her thoughts, wishes and feeling about what was going on around her, and her candid feelings of the people that were closest to her.
She is super inquisitive, always trying to find out her place in life, the things that held her back and the ones that propelled her forward.
Coming from divorced parents, and going back and forth from household to household, with parents who usually had very different ideas about how to live life, could sometimes be a challenge, one that made her chose the parts that she could feel a part of.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Thread books for a copy of this book.

A wonderful, enlightening read. This tells Sharon’s (Jo) story of her childhood and beyond. Sharon was brought up in British Guiana (Guyana as it is now) and had occasional trips to England with her family. Her mother refused to give up work on getting married as was the thing back in the 1950s (and compulsory in some companies) which eventually led to her divorce- again something rather unheard of at the time. Sharon was looked after by an Aunt and there were lots of children around. When she got to school, having read Enid Blyton's tales of British boarding school, it was where she longed to go. Eventually she did and this tells the story of her adventures in Harrogate far away from home and how she became Jo-until she didn't. How her longing for riding was fulfilled and how she began to find herself.
I really enjoyed this. I too read the Enid Blyton books and had the same aspirations so completely get where the author is coming from. A powerful read of someone who found her confidence having arrived saying very little and being tongue tied. Beautifully written and with several pictures I found myself turning and turning, immersed in the story. A wonderful, evocative read.
#blogtour

In reading this memoir, the first half is about her life in British Guiana as a child from age 3 to age 9, then the second is from her time in England age 9 until high school. I kept wondering why am I reading about this person, what is her motivation for telling us her story? As an adult, what happened to her and what did she make of herself? I felt that in her telling of her life, it was based on her thoughts from photographs that she found to conjure up memories as well as to explain her unorthodox upbringing by her unconventional parents. The tone was very flat and without emotion. I found it sad that she really had no firm foundation or sense of home as like many children of divorce who fault themselves for being the reason behind the split. Thank goodness for her grandmas and aunts and uncles. Additionally, throughout her young life, Sharon wrestled with her identity not only racially but her personal beliefs. At a very young age, Sharon had to learn to count on herself. She writes: “A plant can grow strong and stable even in rough and stony ground. So, too, did I learn not only to survive, but to thrive.” While insightful in some parts, as I appreciate her childhood insights especially on the observations of race in Georgetown and then in England at the boarding school, I would have liked to have heard how this affected her adulthood life. What was her impact as an adult? This is not a book that I would rave about for others to read.

Many thanks to #netgalley #thegirlfrom lamahastreet #sharonmaas for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is an incredible insight into a very unusual childhood.
Enhanced by letters to her mum which tended to make me giggle, or cringe, sometimes both this has a great mixture of emotions.
The identity theme personally interested me, in terms of name, and how it felt to be a black child in a white environment.
Nice photographs which added to it.

The Girl from Lamaha Street is an interesting memoir by Sharon Maas about her childhood growing up in Guyana and England.

Thank you to Thread Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!

Available April 2022

Tender and precocious, Sharon Jo Maas's memoir describes her upbringing in tumultuous British Guyana in the early 70s. Led by two brilliant parents, Maas had a life of relative independence. The story unfolds in two parts - her early life in BG and her later adventures in England. Preoccupied with ideas of race, class and ponies, Maas paints an endearing coming of age memoir that captures the heart.

So, I love reading about family, especially in the memoir format and this read definitely didn't disappoint. THE GIRL FROM LAMAHA STREET weaves together beautiful prose and expert storytelling that really does take you back into the childhood the author experienced literally all over the world.

Sharon Maas, born Sharon Westmaas, was born and raised in Georgetown, British Guyana, not by her just her parents, but by an entire extended family that support and cared for each other during the good times and the bad times. Her childhood seemed to be almost like a fairytale; distant but loving parents, magical grandmother matriarchs, eccentric uncles and pious aunts. She spent time outdoors or with her nose in a book; she was surrounded by paradise.

But like most children, including myself, Sharon wanted more for herself. Her mother was a great feminist and her father was intelligent, important. As a young girl she dreamed of leaving her home to attend boarding school in England to ride ponies and find herself and soon she does just that. I can remember being about the same age when I first expressed wanting to go away to a boarding school, not realizing that I wanted better for myself. I just wanted to be apart of the culture and exclusivity. I understand how it was appealing to her. So, topics explored in this piece of work included racism, classism, feminism, politics, and the wants and desires of a girl with the world in the palm of her hand.

Personally, my favorite part about this book was the inclusion of so many family photographs. There is just something so powerful and moving about putting faces to the names and seeing how the family unit co-exists and cares for each other. There is a specific photo I love of Maas with her father in front of a vehicle in the snow that just shows how much she must have been a daddy's girl. However, there were areas of the book that fell short for me and that was only because I knew very little about the topic: horses. Knowing that Sharon is a 'horse-girl' was oddly comforting because I think we all know someone who can fall into that category.

This is definitely a great read and I can't recommend this enough, especially if you are a fan of memoirs and stories of close-knit families. Thank you to Thread Books and Netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Beautiful. Poignant. Phenomenal.
This was a beautify read and I learnt so much. I cried and I smiled and there was nothing more that I wanted from this book. Truly a gem.