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Ancestor Stones: A Novel by [Aminatta Forna]

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Aminatta Forna

Ancestor Stones: A Novel Kindle Edition

by Aminatta Forna (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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From the award-winning author: A “wonderfully ambitious” novel of West Africa, told through the struggles and dreams of four extraordinary women (The Guardian).

When a cousin offers Abie her family’s plantation in the West African village of Rofathane in Sierra Leone, she leaves her husband, children, and career in London to reclaim the home she left behind long ago. With the help of her four aunts—Asana, Mariama, Hawa, and Serah—Abie begins a journey to uncover the past of her family and her home country, buried among the neglected coffee plants.

From rivalries between local chiefs and religious leaders to arranged marriages, manipulative unions, traditional desires, and modern advancements, Abie’s aunts weave a tale of a nation’s descent into chaos—and their own individual struggles to claim their destiny.

Hailed by Marie Claire as “a fascinating evocation of the experience of African women, and all that has been gained—and lost—with the passing of old traditions,” Ancestor Stones is a powerful exploration of family, culture, heritage, and hope.

“This is [Forna’s] first novel, but it is too sophisticated to read like one.” —The Guardian

Print length

340 pages
Language

English
Sticky notes

On Kindle Scribe
Publisher

Grove Press
Publication date

March 18, 2014
File size

925 KB
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Acclaimed memoirist Forna (The Devil That Danced on the Water) glides into fiction with this sweeping portrayal of the lives of five Sierra Leonean women. Abie—a young woman born and raised in Sierra Leone, who now lives in London with her Portuguese-Scottish husband and their children—receives a letter from her aunts informing her they're bequeathing her the family coffee plantation. When Abie returns, her aunts offer her another gift: their stories. A native of Sierra Leone, Forna unpacks Abie's family history (and that of Sierra Leone) using the alternating points of view of Abie's four aunts—Asana, Mary, Hawa and Serah. Asana outlives two husbands and eventually opens her own store, "relinquishing the birthright of womanhood in exchange for the liberty of a man." Mary addresses the changes brought to Africa by the Europeans (prominent among them, the mirror she uses to examine her disfigured face). Hawa trades her gold earrings for bus fare in order to see the sea just once in her life. And Serah opens a voting station during corrupt national elections. Though it's a stretch to call this a novel (each chapter is a self-contained story), Forna's work sheds light on the history of a long-struggling nation. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

From Booklist

Forna follows up her memoir, The Devil That Danced on the Water (2003), with a novel that explores relationships among co-wives in an African village as they cope with religious and political changes that wreak instability in the family complex. Abie is a young woman from West Africa who has lived in England for many years. She left as a child, went to college, and married a Scotsman, with only infrequent visits to keep her attached to her homeland. When she inherits her father's coffee plantation, she returns to face memories and to confront realities of a troubled nation that she has only viewed on the television screen. In simple, subtle stories, Forna conveys the complexity of life in small African villages as Abie's aunts recall their youth, courtships, and lives as co-wives, finding friendships or bitter rivalries. Through the stories of these women, Abie learns of old folkways and modern religious and political strife, as well as enduring lessons of family and kinship. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00JD07HNG
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grove Press; Reprint edition (March 18, 2014)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 18, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 925 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 340 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #642,222 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,251 in Sisters Fiction
- #3,646 in Historical Literary Fiction
- #5,329 in Contemporary Literary Fiction

Customer Reviews:
154 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5

154 global ratings

5 star		49%
4 star		30%
3 star		14%
2 star		5%
1 star		2%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Grandma

Life Long Learmer

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 5, 2021

Verified Purchase

As an African American, I am constantly searching for the true history about my people. I read the book twice to really understand the story line. The writer is exceptional. Her passages are lyrical and posses the power to actually place you at the scene of what is going on. Being a senior, I felt very connected to some of the cultural behaviors.

6 people found this helpful

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Karla Henderson

Enlightening

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 3, 2020

Verified Purchase

It was very well written and profound. The stories, covering generations, were very enlightening and for a Black woman, it was an eye opener.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Rosa E

Loved it!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 18, 2020

Verified Purchase

A beautiful, multi generational story that is very well researched. The characters are each interesting in their own ways, and the descriptions of nature really made the place come alive for me.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

EnJay

Too many characters

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 13, 2017

Verified Purchase

Would have given 5 stars had there been fewer characters to keep track off. I might re-read the book to gain better appreciation.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 17, 2013

Verified Purchase

I suppose this could be called 'faction' in that it combines fact with all the pleasures of a well-written novel but that categorization
does little to convey the wonderful language and images that together provide such insight into the lives we witness while reading the book. It's so far beyond it you can't reduce it to 'post-colonial' literature. It's a book that defies classification even as it draws you in and keeps you fascinated.

4 people found this helpful

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fatima

Beautiful book!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 10, 2015

Verified Purchase

This is a beautiful multilayered book that tells the story of a family women through several generations - their struggles, triumphs and secrets. It's definitely a worthwhile read.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 10, 2014

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Not as clearly written as I would have liked. Interesting but not fluid.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

I bought the book as a birthday gift for a friend, and it arrived much earlier than expected, so I could send it right off.

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

C Cochrane-Davies

Ancester Stones

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 11, 2012

Verified Purchase

I didn't get on with this book, to the point where I had to put it down for a month or so half way through before forcing myself to continue.

Admittedly I found the second half much more enjoyable, but I still couldn't relate to any of the characters at all. The book has been written in the style of a grandmother relating stories from her past, and as such it meanders through her life in such a fashion that I was never entirely sure as to whether it has been written linearly or not.

It's redeeming quality is that it gave me a view into a culture that I couldn't have even imagined, it's just a shame that it never mentions the countries name, which other reviewers have commented is Sierra Leone - having a fixed location would have possibly helped me to fix in my mind what was happening.

An interesting read, but not a book I will be going back to.

2 people found this helpful

J. A. West

Woven stories

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 18, 2013

Verified Purchase

I would like to give this 4.5 stars as I really enjoyed it but not quite in my 'best reads ever'. It is essentially a collection of short stories woven together and forming the lives of the four half-sisters. Each reveals how she is what she is now as a result of her past and the authors first impressions are modified accordingly. Relationships within families are seldom what they seem to outsiders and in a large extended family this is even more so. The reality of life in rural Sierra Leone and the life choices available is well portrayed and you emphathise with these women. There is some humour and some sharp cultural observations. I love that the girl attending the mission school is puzzled as to why the nuns carry books in their arms which prevents them opening doors, and not on their heads!

One person found this helpful

Kindler

Disappointing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 14, 2012

Verified Purchase

After reading the description of the book I thought that this was my kind of story but I found the arrangement of the book too disjointed and I lost track of who was relating their memories of life. However,despite that, the separate accounts were very moving in parts and I learnt a lot about the lives of women in Sierra Leone.

One person found this helpful

Tennisplayer

Exotically Different

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 11, 2014

Verified Purchase

Great story! Loved this book it transports you to Africa and paints a vivid and colourfully rich picture of what lives were like for women through history in this part of the world.

One person found this helpful

Kaj

Couldn't believe this was a first novel.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 6, 2016

Verified Purchase

I was really surprised to learn that this is Aminatta' s first novel. Very accomplished writer. Beautiful prose, although it sometimes gets a bit too clever. All in all, gripping and informative.

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