Such Sweet Thunder really hit me with the raw, unfiltered way it exposes the brutal realities of racism in early 20th century America. Carter doesn't sugarcoat the daily humiliations, violence and systemic barriers that black families faced - how racism was ingrained in every aspect of life, from education to employment, even basic human dignity. It's abhorrent in it's pervasiveness and cruelty, and the book forces you to confront that head on.
What makes the portrayal so powerful is how intimate and personal it feels. Through the eyes of Amerigo and his parents, you experience the exhaustion and pain of navigating a society designed to marginalise and oppress. However, Carter also shows their resilience, their refusal to be broken despite the constant injustice. The novel is a stark reminder of how deeply embedded racism was, and still is, in America's fabric.
This book isn't just a historical narrative, it is a searing indictment of systemic racism and a tribute to the strength it takes to endure and fight against it.

I have read many books including those written by Mary Monroe, "There Eyes Were Watching God" just to name a few, but never a book like this one. Confusing in the way it was written (for lack of a better word) I'm sorry to say I didn't finish it or even get into the book. I really don't want to rate it, however I'll give it one star and thank NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Described in the introduction as being similar to Ulysses by James Joyce, with its stream of consciousness writing and detailed description of places and people.

The book stars of very strong, with vivid imagery and beautiful language, as Amerigo Jones shelters away for the night somewhere in France during WW2. Here he gets reminded of his past and disappears into himself to look at his life right from the very beginning. He sees his parents, grandparents and other family members talk among themselves and he eventually becomes himself as a young boy.

Due to this magical transformation and transportation I would definitely say it is worth rereading the book, at least the beginning part, once you have finished it. There is vivid imagery and you really feel like you can see what is happening, but it is definitely a bit disorientating. The dialogue is very loose, free and flowing - and sometimes it feels almost like reading a play more than anything else.

This book gets a medium rating from me, because even though there were many parts I liked (and I felt way warmer towards it at the end and when rereading the beginning) I found the experience to be overall taxing. It has no chapters, very few obvious breaks and the passage of time isn't always clear. It is definitely not a casual read.

This was a very heartbreaking and heartfelt story. This was a long book but very much worth it. I will recommend.

This is one of those books that had a description that truly excited me for a number of reasons. Having lived in the Kansas City area in the 1960s, I was very eager to read the recent history that this book promised. In that respect it did not disappoint. However, I missed one of the descriptive words which was "hefty." This requires more commitment from the reader than I have. Additionally, it reads as a stream of consciousness work as it jumps from time period to time period and character to character and place to place. I just couldn't. But for those readers with the desire and time to read it, I believe it is a promising work of literature. If the editors were up to it, I'd read a book of selections from this work. But this long version is not for me. And that is no fault of the book itself.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. I hope it finds the right readers.