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thelibraryofklee's review
5.0
"Home is not where one is born; home is where all one’s attempts to escape cease.
- quote attributed to Omar Taher in Gar Na’em"
"Unlikely friends on the run. The Muslim and the Jew. The North and South African - together in their stories and they’re strife."
This book is a soul-searing love letter to the power of friendship in the face of entrenched oppression. The adversity faced will speak to all women, to the indigenous, to the disenfranchised. Shelley Davidow and Shaimaa Khalil have written a dual memoir that shares their most personal experience, framed under the shadow of the Big Bad Patriarch. They meet in Qatar, both migrants; Shelley is an Ashkenazi Jew from South Africa and Shaimaa is a Muslim Arab from Egypt. What endures is the epitome of friendship goals. Both analyse and then co-analyse their experiences between alternating chapters with the deepest form of empathy I have ever been honoured to share in. They explore the violence and harassment every girl eventually is subjected to. They look at the hypocritical views of the idyllic West against the Arab world Shaimaa comes from and Shelley lived in for over a decade. Their personal stories are framed by their day to day interactions particularly with the women around them and also by major world events, such as 9/11. Their weaving of their stories together, the back and forth narrative, is a powerful healing experience - one that should not be missed.
This feminist book is a MUST read. I devoured it within 24 hours. And I sadly feel like my review will not do the beautiful complexity of this book justice. This book inspires me to find strength in my voice, to never be quiet for the sake of others, particularly men. I will be shouting about this one from the rooftops. Highly recommend - feminists reading this novel will find a place of solidarity and encourage their undying rage against the patriarchy.
"But silence is an effective weapon. When you take away the voice, you take away the words. When you take away the words, you take away the story. And then a whole narrative and existence is written for you as a woman by a society that’s sees you as a creature of a certain function or creature of inconvenience- or most commonly a source of shame."
Thank you to Harper Collins NZ for trusting me with this book for an honest review.
- quote attributed to Omar Taher in Gar Na’em"
"Unlikely friends on the run. The Muslim and the Jew. The North and South African - together in their stories and they’re strife."
This book is a soul-searing love letter to the power of friendship in the face of entrenched oppression. The adversity faced will speak to all women, to the indigenous, to the disenfranchised. Shelley Davidow and Shaimaa Khalil have written a dual memoir that shares their most personal experience, framed under the shadow of the Big Bad Patriarch. They meet in Qatar, both migrants; Shelley is an Ashkenazi Jew from South Africa and Shaimaa is a Muslim Arab from Egypt. What endures is the epitome of friendship goals. Both analyse and then co-analyse their experiences between alternating chapters with the deepest form of empathy I have ever been honoured to share in. They explore the violence and harassment every girl eventually is subjected to. They look at the hypocritical views of the idyllic West against the Arab world Shaimaa comes from and Shelley lived in for over a decade. Their personal stories are framed by their day to day interactions particularly with the women around them and also by major world events, such as 9/11. Their weaving of their stories together, the back and forth narrative, is a powerful healing experience - one that should not be missed.
This feminist book is a MUST read. I devoured it within 24 hours. And I sadly feel like my review will not do the beautiful complexity of this book justice. This book inspires me to find strength in my voice, to never be quiet for the sake of others, particularly men. I will be shouting about this one from the rooftops. Highly recommend - feminists reading this novel will find a place of solidarity and encourage their undying rage against the patriarchy.
"But silence is an effective weapon. When you take away the voice, you take away the words. When you take away the words, you take away the story. And then a whole narrative and existence is written for you as a woman by a society that’s sees you as a creature of a certain function or creature of inconvenience- or most commonly a source of shame."
Thank you to Harper Collins NZ for trusting me with this book for an honest review.
bethtana's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
dontforgetthelights's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Cancer, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Deportation, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Infertility, Islamophobia, Sexual violence, Violence, Eating disorder, Rape, Sexism, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Incest, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, and Medical content
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