Brown Girl in the Ring

By: Nalo Hopkinson

Narrated by: Peter Jay Fernandez

It is the late 21st century, and due to the economic breakdown and rising crime rate, nearly every citizen has fled Toronto. The city is a slum, populated by the homeless, the poor, and criminals like Rudy, who uses the power of voodoo to help him control the booming drug market. But also left behind are people like Ti-Jeanne, who hope to use voodoo to help rebuild the city, even as Canada's privileged population turns to Toronto to begin harvesting human organs.

To uncover the future voices of science fiction, Time Warner Publishing sponsored a contest that attracted hundreds of submissions. Brown Girl in the Ring was the winning entry, announcing author Nalo Hopkinson to the world as a tremendous new talent.

©1998 Nalo Hopkinson (P)2006 Recorded Books LLC

Critic reviews

"Hopkinson's writing is smooth and assured, and her characters lively and believable. She has created a vivid world of urban decay and startling, dangerous magic, where the human heart is both a physical and metaphorical key." (Publishers Weekly)

fantastic

I underestimated the narrator based off of the sample but he did a great story justice! This is so beautifully written, the patois feels like home. I love falling asleep to Nalo's books, it's like being read stories by my grandparents who have passed. The mysticism and playfulness is ancestral and makes me nostalgic. With that said, it sparked my imagination in so many moments, especially with the Haitian practices that I'm unfamiliar with. The orisha names are different here than in my culture so it was fun to force my mind to reorient.

This story is strikingly similar to Nnedi Okorafor's Who Fears Death, but was written far earlier and in my opinion is stronger in its politic. The protagonist is forced to come into her own power and self-understanding despite an abrupt separation from her teacher. She must fight the ultimate evil, which is a part of her own blood line, with the ultimate strength which is also within her lineage. It's poetic and gripping. "Never a dull moment" as an elder would say.

very moving

such a beautiful story and a pulling back of the curtain onto a culture

A must listen!

Entertaining, engaging, moving. The narrative is still nuanced and relevant so many years after publication.

Heavy Heavy!!

What did you love best about Brown Girl in the Ring?

I appreciate the story on all of its levels. It presented so many issues. Social and Political, modern practice of ancestral practices, connecting with spirits, poverty, crime.... all exist in this story centered around one woman's quest to find herself.

This story was colorful, heartfelt. Warm and cold.

What did you like best about this story?

The story definitely has elements that challenge the western approach to healing and living. It does so in a way that does not demonize those who practice it.

I love the Author's descriptive writing style, I can connect to the story and all my senses are activated.

Have you listened to any of Peter Jay Fernandez’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have never listened to Peter Jay Fernandez, and he is amazing! The story is written in a patois and he performs it in a way that is still understandable.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The line in the sand has been drawn.... which side are you on?

Any additional comments?

I actually picked up this book a few years ago at the library and I was distracted by other books; I couldn't get through it. I'm glad I found it in this form because it is truly enjoyable.

Delightfully Bold

So many books in the fantasy genres try to capture the dangerous and wild spirit of fairy tales, but this one actually achieves it.

Captivating

Absolutely fantastic! I was captivated from start to finish. An excellent well told story. Fabulous!

Good until...

Man becomes Healthcare professional. He then becomes the equivalent of a crack head, loses his job and resorts to gang activity. Girl leaves guy because he is a crackhead and she is prego but knows he can't provide. Guy KILLS girls grandmother because of his actions from stealing drugs. Girl lets him see the baby and converses with him at the end because he is "sorry".

Got a Fan in me

Yes thanks for being a vessel of pure greatness, she capture our stories and infused them with her own original story.

Good debut

I got this as part of a sale on Audible in October 2018. The title reminded me of a song by Boney M that I would hear all the time at work, and I think that inspired me to buy it from the sale.

I liked it although I felt the plot was not as advertised: "But also left behind are people like Ti-Jeanne, who hope to use voodoo to help rebuild the city..."

She does nothing of the sort. She is reluctant to learn the ways of magic from her grandmother. However, I really did like the relationship between Ti-Jeanne and her grandmother.

The whole story is a good debut but I'm not sure if I will listen/read more from Nalo.

I was really glad that I listened to it because the accents was easier than reading the vernacular.

3 out of 5 Human Hearts.

Brilliant

I really liked this story. The world building, the narration, the homage to African spirituality and Caribbean folklore were great. I learned a lot from the seer-woman, serving-the- ancestors storyline. I didn’t like the characters because they were terrible people but they were brilliantly written.
I’m guessing performances refers to the narration on audible? -Which is why I’m giving that a 3.