Name: It Is Wood, It Is Stone
ISBN: 9781984855831

Gabriella Burnham

"Takes place over the course of a year in Säao Paulo, Brazil, [where] which two women's lives intersect: Linda, an anxious and restless American ... and [her] skilled maid Marta, [who] has more claim to Linda's home than she can fathom. [This is a] debut novel by young Brazilian American author Gabriella Burnham ... about women whose romantic and subversive entanglements reflect on class and colorism, sexuality, and complex, divisive histories"--

A Novel

It Is Wood, It Is Stone

Fraser Simons

The perspective meanders in a way that might bug some people, but I actually quite liked how the story is told. The connective tissue of her past in memories and what is currently happening jives with my own experiences. Sometimes things are explained with granular detail, sometimes they feel ephemeral and floaty. It’s interesting to see what “matters” to her or impacts her. The only weak point for me is that a more punctuated theme might have drawn the collection of thoughts together a bit better.

Ana Couto

As a fellow Brazilian-American myself, it's rare that I find contemporary authors who also fit this identity. Needless to say, I was beyond excited to read IT IS WOOD, IT IS STONE earlier this year, and it did not disappoint. In addition, as someone who has lived in São Paulo, I think Burnham perfectly captured how race and class are inextricably linked in this city, and often ignored by the wealthier, predominantly white side of town. I did, however, find the main character (Linda) to be somewhat annoying, though I suppose that was the point. She is so self-absorbed and blinded by her "American-ness" that she indirectly refuses to learn and respect the Brazilian culture (but again, this seemed like an implicit criticism by the author on the type of person that Linda represents). The only reason I'm giving this a 4-star rating and not a 5 is because I prefer novels with likable protagonists so that I feel like I have someone to root for, but I do want to acknowledge that unlikeable characters are just as important when telling certain kinds of stories. With all that being said, I still highly recommend this book and wish that narratives about Brazil and its culture were more widely circulated in the American publishing industry.

Than you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free book in exchange for an honest review!

It Is Wood, It Is Stone A Novel

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