Maame

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If you’re a '90s kid, you know that even though Lizzie McGuire is an outfit-repeater, Kate Sanders is worse because she’s an outfit-rememberer. As a postpartum fatass, I can fit into approximately five outfits and therefore am giving major Lizzie outfit-repeater energy. Maddie, the main character of Maame, can relate; she’s a self-proclaimed Lizzie McGuire.

Let me explain. Maddie is a naive Londoner in her mid-twenties, stifled by her family dynamics. She’s the primary caretaker for her dad, who has late-stage Parkinson’s, and her life feels a little on pause as a result. She takes a very conversational tone with the reader, almost like she’s leaning in and whispering to you, and we get to see her thought process as if she has a Lizzie McGuire on her shoulder. As a result, I really got to know her on a deep level. I rooted for her and was moved by the complexities of her relationship with her dad and how his personality towards her changed as a result of his disease. 

As a whole, the writing is quite detailed. Jessica George, the author, doesn’t skip over the mundane, so we get a taste of Maddie’s day-to-day. I liked this for a while– it felt intimate and easy– but the book ultimately drags and devolves into something not super memorable. I like Maddie, the London vibes, and how George wraps up the ending, but I wouldn’t rush to recommend the book. It receives 3 out of 5 flames.