The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter ..., Soraya Palmer
The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter ..., Soraya Palmer
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The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts

Author: Soraya Palmer

Narrator: Jaimi Gray

Unabridged: 9 hr 11 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 03/28/2023

Synopsis

Sisters Zora and Sasha Porter are drifting apart. Bearing witness to their father’s violence and their mother’s worsening illness, an unsettled Zora escapes into her journal, dreaming of being a writer, while Sasha discovers sex and chest binding, spending more time with her new girlfriend than at home. But the sisters, like their parents, must come together to answer to something more ancient and powerful than they know—and reckon with a family secret buried in the past. A tale told from the perspective of a mischievous narrator, featuring the Rolling Calf who haunts butchers, Mama Dglo who lives in the ocean, a vain tiger, and an outsmarted snake, The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts is set in a world as alive and unpredictable as Helen Oyeyemi’s. Telling of the love between sisters who don’t always see eye to eye, this extraordinary debut novel is a celebration of the power of stories, asking What happens to us when our stories are erased? Do we disappear? Or do we come back haunting?

About Soraya Palmer

Soraya Palmer is a Flatbush-born-and-raised writer and licensed social worker who advocates for survivors of gender-based violence who are facing criminal charges related to their abuse. She has been awarded a residency at Blue Mountain Center and interviewed for her work against police brutality, gentrification, and violence in The New York Times and BuzzFeed News. She lives in New York.

About Jaimi Gray

Jaimi Gray is an experienced actress, voiceover artist, and on-air host based in Los Angeles, California. The voice of Phaedra Westward in the animated series Rainbow High, the English dub voice of Jess and of Eagle in the hit animated movie Miraculous World: New York - United Heroez, and the voice of Felicia for Bratz, she is also known for voicing in anime, video games, and audiobooks and for hosting some of Hollywood's biggest red-carpet events.

Reviews

Goodreads review by BookOfCinz on November 17, 2023

This is what I mean by a stellar debut! I am blown away! Soraya Palmer was flexing on us when she wrote this debut novel and I am here for it, because it is truly an experience reading this book and I need everyone to engage with what true storytelling looks like. The Human Origins of Beatrice Port......more

Goodreads review by Dona's on April 04, 2023

Thank you to the author Soraya Palmer, publishers Dreamscape Media, and as always NetGalley, for an advance audio copy of THE HUMAN ORIGINS OF BEATRICE PORTER AND OTHER ESSENTIAL GHOSTS. I thought the narrator, Jaimie Gray, was good, but inconsistent throughout the audiobook. For me, this audiobook i......more

Goodreads review by Jesse On Youtube on February 04, 2024

One of the best books we have ever read. Thank you, Soraya Palmer. Thank you.......more

Goodreads review by Emily on September 26, 2023

An incredibly moving interweaving of narratives that attests to the all encompassing power of storytelling and love. Following sisters as they come of age amidst illness, unfaithfulness, and an imploding marriage, this debut is authentic in its protagonists search for belonging and identity; it is a......more

Goodreads review by 2TReads on March 22, 2023

This was such a great read. Written for us with no apologies. "Nothing more dangerous than a story with an owner that no one can touch." –Beatrice For me, it is the seamless weaving of our orality and roundabout ways of telling stories and histories that make this such a worthwhile read. Palmer has pa......more

Quotes

Like the West African folktales upon which the family relies, the novel highlights the power of story and myth to engage, teach, and soothe—and the enduring power of West African folklore in the diaspora.

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