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hellosarahlou's review
4.0
Struggled to put this one down. Zoya’s writing is incredibly engaging and she writes with such passion. Regardless of your background this is a must read. We can all do better when it comes to listening & supporting marginalised groups. I am a firm believer in reading & listening to people whose experiences differ greatly to our own - this is where our knowledge & learnings truly begin to develop.
jaclyn_sixminutesforme's review
4.0
This memoir and broader discussion about identity and belonging collectively was a really engaging read, one that I think really hit its stride in the final few essays.
Patel presents a memoir of her life between Fiji, Australia, and Scotland, and interspersed in these thematically and event-focussed essays are broader engagements with these broader themes of race and religion and feminism. It’s a really effective use of form to share a personal perspective on these topics and engage the reader in broader discussions simultaneously—I did feel it leaned more into the memoir aspect and at times left me reaching a little further in its critical engagement with other texts or broader context (and I feel like it *did* set out to have this bigger conversation)
In light of discussions in the book community in 2020 alone, the comments Patel makes around representation in literature (specifically works by white writers) really struck a chord, particularly this idea of manufacturing inclusion in fiction. If you’ve been following along with the critical reception to Craig Silvey’s HONEYBEE for example, much of what is discussed by Patel regarding racial diversity is readily extrapolated in regard to other intersections of representation in literature.
I really enjoyed the way Patel explored her own journey with feminism, and the whiteness of this space in the literature she consumed as a teen. I think she touched on some really interesting discussions around the privileges in white liberal feminism, the whiteness of individual freedom conceptually, and some of the limitations of looking at “women” as a binary concept, and I would have loved to have seen this explored further (for example, in much the way she engages with Reni Eddo-Lodge’s text).
I really connected with Patel’s discussions around identifying as “Australian” and what that even means—the complexities inherent in that, and particularly how that changes when you are living overseas.
For me, the standout essays were Against the Tide, Bidding the Biddai, and How to Be An Ally To People of Color—Take Two. This is a truly engaging read and Patel is a literary voice I will eagerly follow (very excited to see that she is Chair of the 2021 Stella Prize Judging Panel).
Patel presents a memoir of her life between Fiji, Australia, and Scotland, and interspersed in these thematically and event-focussed essays are broader engagements with these broader themes of race and religion and feminism. It’s a really effective use of form to share a personal perspective on these topics and engage the reader in broader discussions simultaneously—I did feel it leaned more into the memoir aspect and at times left me reaching a little further in its critical engagement with other texts or broader context (and I feel like it *did* set out to have this bigger conversation)
In light of discussions in the book community in 2020 alone, the comments Patel makes around representation in literature (specifically works by white writers) really struck a chord, particularly this idea of manufacturing inclusion in fiction. If you’ve been following along with the critical reception to Craig Silvey’s HONEYBEE for example, much of what is discussed by Patel regarding racial diversity is readily extrapolated in regard to other intersections of representation in literature.
I really enjoyed the way Patel explored her own journey with feminism, and the whiteness of this space in the literature she consumed as a teen. I think she touched on some really interesting discussions around the privileges in white liberal feminism, the whiteness of individual freedom conceptually, and some of the limitations of looking at “women” as a binary concept, and I would have loved to have seen this explored further (for example, in much the way she engages with Reni Eddo-Lodge’s text).
I really connected with Patel’s discussions around identifying as “Australian” and what that even means—the complexities inherent in that, and particularly how that changes when you are living overseas.
For me, the standout essays were Against the Tide, Bidding the Biddai, and How to Be An Ally To People of Color—Take Two. This is a truly engaging read and Patel is a literary voice I will eagerly follow (very excited to see that she is Chair of the 2021 Stella Prize Judging Panel).
thunderhead's review
4.0
I’ve been loitering around this book at work since we got it in stock, and I finally decided it was time to take it home. I was not disappointed. The way Patel articulates her thoughts, experiences and ideas is truly engrossing. I’m a firm believer that reading is a gateway to understanding the lives and experiences of others from different backgrounds. Do give it a read.
nibs's review
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
I first heard of Zoya Patel from her contribution to the anthology After Australia. I looked into several authors from that book, and had her memoir on my TBR ever since.
I recommended this book to so many friends while reading it (which bumped it up from 4 to 4.5 stars). As someone in Australia, I have many friends who have experienced the idea of not being Australian enough, being a kind of 'no country' person. Reading this has helped me understand their experiences more. Cultural identity in Australia is complex, and this book goes into it really well.
I recommended this book to so many friends while reading it (which bumped it up from 4 to 4.5 stars). As someone in Australia, I have many friends who have experienced the idea of not being Australian enough, being a kind of 'no country' person. Reading this has helped me understand their experiences more. Cultural identity in Australia is complex, and this book goes into it really well.
archytas's review
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
Feminism has benefited enormously from an embrace of how colonialism and other forms of racism and capitalist economies interact. Patel's No Country Woman is a series of interconnected essays exploring her experiences with "hyphenated identities", migration, racism, animal rights and feminism - growing up from Fiji to Albury to Canberra. The collection provides a good understanding of Patel's experiences and perspectives. It has an inevitable twenty-something feel to the book - written by a woman just coming into a sense of identity, and I suspect it will find the most passionate readership in the same cohort.
wtb_michael's review
3.0
I wanted to like this a bit more than I did - Patel is an engaging memoirist, writing with candour and thoughtfulness about life between cultures - but there were times it felt like a loosely connected set of memoir-y essays rather than a really strong and coherent narrative. That's fine of course, but then you want the essays to dig a bit deeper - if you're going to write a chapter about vegetarianism, than I want something a bit more involved and thought-provoking. This is all a bit critical - it's a smart and readable book with some real insights to offer, I just came in with very high expectations I think.
zasobel's review
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I think Zoya is brilliant
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism