What do readers think of Digging Stars by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma? Write your own review.

When one idealizes people, countries or philosophies, all of these will eventually fail to hold up to one's expectations. And these failings can even cause one to have mental or emotional anguish. In this story, Rosa - a smart, talented, young woman - finds herself in that exact situation. As she journeys through her young adulthood, Rosa begins to find a way to accept the humanity of her father, her friends, her home country and her adopted country. Therefore healing and accepting herself.

I've tried writing this review several times and have struggled because I struggled a bit with the book. The author is talented and I would pay attention to future books of hers. The book is well written and for the most part flows. I didn't particularly like any of the characters or at least wasn't necessarily interested in getting to know them better, and probably because they were brilliant and interested in subjects that aren't interesting to me, The book would be more meaningful, I think, to someone interested in quantum mechanics, biology, stars and virtual worlds. Would I recommend, probably not but will pass on to friends to get their reaction.

This tale definitely stretched the limits of my knowledge about astronomy, Zimbabwe, and elite private college programs. The overall story was quite interesting but personally boring in regards to the descriptions of the stars and constellations. I enjoyed the characters and I found the dialogue to be authentic. However, I found it hard to believe that Rosa's "terrors" took so long to be diagnosed when she was in the US, and I found the ending somewhat unsatisfying. I wanted more answers to her father's relationship with Mr. C., and to know if her relationship with Peralte continues.

This is the story of Athandwa, a girl from Zimbabwe who follows in her father's footsteps to study Astronomy in the US. Along the way we learn about her family dynamics - a distant father, a "step family", her "Uncle C"; and the differences between her father's life in America and her life with her mother in Zimbabwe. There was a lot of interesting science woven throughout the book, which I enjoyed. But even though there were a lot of great characters, I felt some of the storylines were one dimensional or were just wrapped up without a thorough understanding/explanation.

I found this book difficult to read and more importantly, difficult to relate to the characters. I understand that many other individuals enjoyed this read, but I did not. I found the writing to be disjointed and the subject matter not very interesting. I do understand that the author was telling a tale of a father/daughter relationship, but it did not resonate with me.