Stephanie Jane reviewed The hairdresser of Harare by Tendai Huchu
Lively and entertaining
4 stars
I had seen The Hairdresser Of Harare positively reviewed on other book blogs so jumped at the chance to purchase my own copy when the ebook was discounted recently on Amazon. It's a fairly light-hearted story - although with violent episodes towards the end - and I thought Huchu portrayed modern day Zimbabwe in a lively and entertaining way. I liked his characters, all of whom felt real although perhaps slightly larger than life, and the potentially bitchy atmosphere of the hair salon was great fun. Vimbai is a deceptively complex woman. Initially I thought her rather vain and shallow, but as I discovered more about her life and her choices I found myself really rooting for her to succeed.
Huchu describes Harare in a way that made the city appeal to me, but he doesn't shy away from its negative aspects. I was shocked by the aggressive male behaviour …
I had seen The Hairdresser Of Harare positively reviewed on other book blogs so jumped at the chance to purchase my own copy when the ebook was discounted recently on Amazon. It's a fairly light-hearted story - although with violent episodes towards the end - and I thought Huchu portrayed modern day Zimbabwe in a lively and entertaining way. I liked his characters, all of whom felt real although perhaps slightly larger than life, and the potentially bitchy atmosphere of the hair salon was great fun. Vimbai is a deceptively complex woman. Initially I thought her rather vain and shallow, but as I discovered more about her life and her choices I found myself really rooting for her to succeed.
Huchu describes Harare in a way that made the city appeal to me, but he doesn't shy away from its negative aspects. I was shocked by the aggressive male behaviour that women endure daily - unwanted and uninvited chat-ups repeatedly being followed with abusive language when refused or ignored. Ingrained cultural attitudes towards homosexuality were also difficult for me to accept. Dumi's 'secret' is telegraphed from fairly early on in the novel so I wasn't surprised by the revelation - certainly not as much as Vimbai is! - and her immediate response was disappointing although I suppose understandable given her lack of relevant knowledge.
Having very much enjoyed reading most of The Hairdresser Of Harare, I felt the last quarter was too rushed which did spoil the book a bit for me, but I look forward to reading more Tendai Huchu novels in the future.