Published 6th February 2020 by Trapeze.
Read June 2020.
Queenie Jenkins feels like she is not in control of her life anymore - if she ever was. She is on a break from her long-term boyfriend, Tom, which she hopes is a break rather than a break-up anyway... she has nowhere to live... work is getting on top of her (along with a lot of dead-beat men)... and her family is showing her zero sympathy.
Queenie was named to be queen of everything, but she is struggling to rule her own life.
This darkly comic take on life, love, race and family will have you rooting for the lovely Queenie all the way!
******************************************************
I have been meaning to read Queenie for quite while now, and my copy has been sitting on a shelf in all its delicious pinkness for longer than I intended - so I am very glad to have finally become acquainted with the lovely lady herself, as she is quite simply wonderful.
Queenie is struggling with her life and doesn't seem to know which way to turn to get back in control. Having lost the stability she believed she had with her ex-boyfriend, Queenie falls into a pattern of casual sex with a string of highly unsuitable, and not very nice, men and who treat her like an object - and all other areas of her life are suffering too.
The lovely Queenie deserves so much more, but she cannot even begin to see this until she confronts a few home truths about herself and her background, and she is going to need some help doing this.
For most of the story, all you want to do is give Queenie a great big hug and make her see that she is worth so much more than she thinks she is. Although she feels her life is on the slide from the time she and Tom begin their break, as the reader you can see that she has actually been a ticking time-bomb for some considerable time - and Tom was hardly the perfect boyfriend she thought him to be. Queenie needs to find out who she really is and what she really wants before she can be happy - and she is not going to do this by relying on men like Tom, even if he is the best of a bad bunch.
For most of the story, all you want to do is give Queenie a great big hug and make her see that she is worth so much more than she thinks she is. Although she feels her life is on the slide from the time she and Tom begin their break, as the reader you can see that she has actually been a ticking time-bomb for some considerable time - and Tom was hardly the perfect boyfriend she thought him to be. Queenie needs to find out who she really is and what she really wants before she can be happy - and she is not going to do this by relying on men like Tom, even if he is the best of a bad bunch.
There is a lot to unpackage from this book, and it is so much more than the humorous account of the ups and downs of one London black girl's life, which really surprised me as it is normally promoted as a funny book. Although there is an awful lot of laugh out loud humour, especially from Queenie's interactions with her friends and family, this book asks some very deep and timely questions too.
The significance of Queenie's cultural heritage, and her traumatic upbringing, weigh very heavily on her. She has been brought up to believe that the traditional "strong black woman" trope is the only way to live, by both her own family and society in general, and this is really not working out well for her.
Queenie's mental health needs addressing, but how can she do this when she should be able to take everything life throws at her on her own broad shoulders, and her family would rather die than acknowledge that counselling is an option? I found this rather sad as Queenie's difficulty in reaching out for help comes not only from feeling that she is letting herself and her family down, but that she is somehow betraying the expectations placed on her as a black woman too. Everyone is telling her she should be behaving in a certain way, particularly the kind of men she associates with, and it's not surprising that she is struggling. That is a lot of pressure to be dealing with.
One of the really interesting things that this book also highlights is the effect of gentrification on parts of London like Brixton, where redevelopment is actually wiping away black heritage from neighbourhoods of the city where they have been a defining part of the character of the area since Windrush days. It's all too easy to say that this is a necessary evil, when there is demand for new housing and amenities, but we should all be more aware about how much is being lost in the name of progress.
Ultimately, this is a book about finding your strength from family and friends, and making peace with yourself and the expectations that are placed on you. Queenie's loved ones are a great source of her problems, but they are all there for her in their own special way, and this is where much of the humour comes from in this tale - especially her friends, The Corgis (and I think we all need a Kayzike and her sizeable handbag in our lives).
Yes, it is a funny book, but it also so much more, because there is so much to think about from Queenie's tale - I will be very surprised if it doesn't make your heart sing, and your eyes brim with tears that are not laughter related too.
If you haven't read this one yet, then you really should.
Queenie is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer.
From the cover of the book:
Queenie's mental health needs addressing, but how can she do this when she should be able to take everything life throws at her on her own broad shoulders, and her family would rather die than acknowledge that counselling is an option? I found this rather sad as Queenie's difficulty in reaching out for help comes not only from feeling that she is letting herself and her family down, but that she is somehow betraying the expectations placed on her as a black woman too. Everyone is telling her she should be behaving in a certain way, particularly the kind of men she associates with, and it's not surprising that she is struggling. That is a lot of pressure to be dealing with.
One of the really interesting things that this book also highlights is the effect of gentrification on parts of London like Brixton, where redevelopment is actually wiping away black heritage from neighbourhoods of the city where they have been a defining part of the character of the area since Windrush days. It's all too easy to say that this is a necessary evil, when there is demand for new housing and amenities, but we should all be more aware about how much is being lost in the name of progress.
Ultimately, this is a book about finding your strength from family and friends, and making peace with yourself and the expectations that are placed on you. Queenie's loved ones are a great source of her problems, but they are all there for her in their own special way, and this is where much of the humour comes from in this tale - especially her friends, The Corgis (and I think we all need a Kayzike and her sizeable handbag in our lives).
Yes, it is a funny book, but it also so much more, because there is so much to think about from Queenie's tale - I will be very surprised if it doesn't make your heart sing, and your eyes brim with tears that are not laughter related too.
If you haven't read this one yet, then you really should.
Queenie is available to buy now from your favourite book retailer.
From the cover of the book:
She just can't cut a break. Well, apart from one from her long term boyfriend, Tom.
That's just a break though. Definitely not a break up.
Stuck between a boss who doesn't seem to see her, a family who don't seem to listen
(if it's not Jesus or water rates, they're not interested),
and trying to fit in two worlds that don't really understand her, it's no wonder she's struggling.
She was named to be queen of everything.
So why is she finding it so hard to rule her own life?
A darkly comic and bitingly subversive take on life, love, race and family,
Queenie will have you nodding in recognition, crying in solidarity
and rooting for this unforgettable character every step of the way.
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