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Cereus Blooms at Night
- Penguin Modern Classics Edition
- Narrated by: Shaquille James-Hosten
- Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins
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Cereus Blooms at Night
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Summary
Finalist for the Giller Prize
Finalist for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
Bold and lyrical, sensual and highly charged, Cereus Blooms at Night is the beautifully written, sensational first novel by Shani Mootoo, one of Canada’s most exciting literary voices.
At the core of this haunting multigenerational novel are the shifting faces of Mala - adventurer and protector, recluse, and madwoman. Told by the engaging voice of Tyler, Mala’s vivacious male caretaker at the Paradise Alms House, Cereus Blooms at Night is layered with unforgettable scenes of a world where love and treachery collide.
Critic reviews
“Dazzling.... Mootoo creates a dense Asian-Caribbean world of buried secrets and desperate memories, a hothouse in which stories grow as lushly as flowers.” (Books in Canada)
“The passion of the characters, their insistence to live, to find joy despite the tyranny under which they conduct their lives, makes Cereus Blooms at Night remarkable.” (Shyam Selvadurai, author of Funny Boy)
“[Mootoo's] language and characters seduce us away to a mythic place that is, by turns, as sweet as the first knowing of love and as hard as a callous blow. Inside the grand sweep of the story are the finely tuned details which mark a brilliant storyteller.” (Jewelle Gomez)
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What listeners say about Cereus Blooms at Night
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 03-08-23
This is so good I am going to struggle to do it ju
This is a fantastic book set on fictitious Caribbean Island. Written in early 90's, I believe it to be way ahead of it's time particularly in how it explores gender. However, it also explores trauma and the effect it can have on the mind, particularly if the trauma starts from a young age, so please check trigger warnings because it does become graphic and unflinching, particularly towards the end.
Religion is also an important theme here, along with a bit of found family fun for a bit of light relief.
The writing is top knotch, but the thing that impressed me the most in an already impressive novel was the plotting it is exquisite. Especially when you consider it was a debut. If I can describe it visually and say, on the outside, it is a perfect circle and on inside, you peel back the layers.
If you think you can see yourself over the trigger warnings, then this is a total gem and a lesson in why you should sometimes join a bookclub because I would never have found it otherwise.
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