Book review: The Untelling

The Author Tayari Jones is an Atlanta native and  is an award winning author for her novel “Leaving Atlanta”. The author Tayari Jones was a Spelman College graduate, she has several degrees such as a Ph.D from the University of Iowa. She has received awards for her writings such as the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Debut Fiction in 2003 and the Lillian C. Smith award in 2006 .Tayari Jones creates books for the young African American reader like myself. Jones generally generates African American literature. Her writing is geared towards young women who have overcome personal struggles in lives.  She creates books to make you feel like achieving your goals is possible and can be easily obtainable.

In her novel “The Untelling” the lost of a family member is tragic, but losing a parent is even more devastating. Living as a young lady growing up without your a father, experiencing “teenage things” has taken Ariadne for a loop. The death of her father not only affects her, but also her now widowed mother and older sister Hermione. After the death of her father the two sisters relationship with their mother began to go down hill. The three women need to learn how to deal with their difficulties and continue to live their lives in the best way possible.  

Going to her mother’s alma mater, Spelman College, Aria receives a degree. Aria deals with the medical issues that will affect her future, and she debates telling her new fiancé Dwayne. The main character Ariadne (Aria) has been though a lot of bad life experiences and she is scared that could potentially cause more misfortune in her life. Aria in her mid twenties watches everyone progress in their lives and families and struggles with the outcome of her life.   

From start to finish the main character Aria Jackson has been authentic. She seemed so real and her story was very effective to me.  As I read I felt like I was Aria and I was dealing with her life. Aria seemed very credible , despite her dishonestly to her fiance.  I would strongly recommend anyone who is into realistic fiction and tragedies to read this book. Several times throughout this story I did shed a few tears. I genuinely felt like helping her with her issues ,knowing there was nothing I could do.  

I truly believe that this book can be relatable to all people. I have always wanted to go to a HBCU, like Spelman College, where several of the characters in the story attended ,and also where the author attended.  The author does a great job using realistic life circumstances. I felt like I was the main character, like I was her dealing with her tough life challenges. Tayari Jones does a great with her tone of writing. Throughout the story I felt anxious, wondering what was going to happen next and anticipating the next big challenge. The author revealed a lot of controversial medical issues, such as abortion. Knowing that that topic is well disputed ,and that I love to debate or discuss controversial topics , I felt like this book was a great match for me. The author also used a very informal writing style, her use of profanity and slang understanding considering I am teenager and am around that type of language all of the time.  

Towards the ending of the book I began to become disappointed. Throughout the whole plot I was anticipating a happy ending, however I was very disappointed after the story concluded. In some ways the story exceeded my expectations by having relatable situations and making me feel sympathetic towards the characters life circumstances. I really enjoy happy endings. In this case the book did not exceed my expectations. I would have preferred if the book had more of a predictable ending.   

While reading this story the question of “Is it okay to lie?” became very present. While reading I contemplated the idea if it really was okay to lie if you are trying not to hurt someone. I then realized that it not okay. It means more to people that you tell them the truth, rather than just lying at first, because that will make the situation more complicated.

This story was recommended to me by Ms. Rami, because of her knowing that I am into very realistic types of writings. I am very happy that she recommended this book to me and am very glad that I completed this book.

Title: The Untelling

Author: Tayari Jones

Publishing: Grand Central Publishing, 2006

Date of publication: 2005

Genre: Fiction

Creative:

Link to "The Untelling" Blog