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9 reviews for:
Thousand Sisters: My Journey Into the Worst Place on Earth to Be a Woman, A
Lisa J. Shannon
3.37 AVERAGE
9 reviews for:
Thousand Sisters: My Journey Into the Worst Place on Earth to Be a Woman, A
Lisa J. Shannon
3.37 AVERAGE
The book was ok - told an important story - but it didn't make me feel any sympathy at all for the writer (who was telling the story in the first person). Overall, it didn't make the impact that a better written version would have.
The title of this book alone moved me. The cover description was compelling. Sadly, beyond those I just couldn't engage with the author's voice to see it through. I admire her courage and conviction to be so moved by the plight of others to risk herself to help, and I have no doubt that her experience was powerful. I just didn't feel it in the words. She told her story, rather than showed it, brought me into her experience.
I had higher hopes for this book than I received honestly.
It was like Lisa Shannon was trying to ... hide? ... what she actually saw. Like the entire book is a 'veil' of what she actually saw and felt.
It went into some specifics but not really enough to make me go 'wow, why the hell is that happening' .. It makes you think for sure but, it doesn't REALLY draw you in like you'd think it would.
Love the work she's done, love the cause, think its awesome. Just didn't like the book.
- CJ
It was like Lisa Shannon was trying to ... hide? ... what she actually saw. Like the entire book is a 'veil' of what she actually saw and felt.
It went into some specifics but not really enough to make me go 'wow, why the hell is that happening' .. It makes you think for sure but, it doesn't REALLY draw you in like you'd think it would.
Love the work she's done, love the cause, think its awesome. Just didn't like the book.
- CJ
This was a tough one to rate. The story or cause should have 5 stars. The author may be a philanthropist, but perhaps not a writer. I struggle when Westerners go to places and try to change things without really understanding the situation. Obviously the intent is to make a difference, and I applaud that effort, but her "white woman privilege" felt very 'patting herself on her back' to me. (again, this could be wrong, but her writing style reflected this more than anything).
HOWEVER, the bottom line, is she provoked my interest, and as a runner, and a woman, I am now motivated to look further into sponsoring a Congo Sister, and also to raise awareness to this horrific situation. The book has haunted me. So even though I gave only 2 stars, it is worth reading, if not the book than at least the cause. http://www.runforcongowomen.org/
HOWEVER, the bottom line, is she provoked my interest, and as a runner, and a woman, I am now motivated to look further into sponsoring a Congo Sister, and also to raise awareness to this horrific situation. The book has haunted me. So even though I gave only 2 stars, it is worth reading, if not the book than at least the cause. http://www.runforcongowomen.org/
It is hard to rate this book. The subject matter is very disturbing. I never would have picked this up on my own. But I also felt a lot of the time the author was like "oh poor me" I have been to the Congo and seen all this and it has affected me and I don't know what to do. I wanted to hear more of the stories of the sisters.
Once again I forgot why I put this on my to-read shelf, so when I requested it I was curious where the worst place was to be a woman. I was thinking Afghanistan or Yemen, but, no, Congo. Which ... is a pretty terrible place to be female, yeah. And the whole situation, ugh.
And so, one woman did something. Which, you know, is cool. This is more about that but gets into a lot of the political history of why and what (although I hope the phrase "Africa's World War" never catches on, ugh).
She also goes to Congo, so it's not just a story of a woman in Portland. It's an interesting comparison to the old colonial image of Africa that still somehow lingers in my mental image of Africa...and I've been there.
Despite the awful misery, it was told in a very readable, relatable way, which seems like a sort of weird thing to say, but there it is. Recommended (and read [b:King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa|347610|King Leopold's Ghost A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa|Adam Hochschild|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348621563s/347610.jpg|937922] for more background. And, umm, awfulness.)
And so, one woman did something. Which, you know, is cool. This is more about that but gets into a lot of the political history of why and what (although I hope the phrase "Africa's World War" never catches on, ugh).
She also goes to Congo, so it's not just a story of a woman in Portland. It's an interesting comparison to the old colonial image of Africa that still somehow lingers in my mental image of Africa...and I've been there.
Despite the awful misery, it was told in a very readable, relatable way, which seems like a sort of weird thing to say, but there it is. Recommended (and read [b:King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa|347610|King Leopold's Ghost A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa|Adam Hochschild|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348621563s/347610.jpg|937922] for more background. And, umm, awfulness.)
Lisa Shannon actually does more than the feigned attempt most of us give to a crisis, “oh, how I wish we could help!” is often the refrain. After watching an episode devoted to the crisis in the Congo on Oprah (leave it to Oprah!), Lisa is determined to make a difference in the lives of women who have been tortured, beaten, raped, mutilated, by the hands of invaders as well and their own countrymen. She runs marathons, she raises money, and she travels to the Congo in hopes that she alone can make a life better. And for the most part she does - -she brings gifts, she brings light, and I think she brings hope. She doesn’t bring peace or the end to their suffering – but nothing buy a higher power could possibly attain that result.
A Thousand Sisters is an emotional, grueling, upsetting personal account of Lisa’s attempt to make change. She spends 5 weeks in the Congo befriending and listening to the horror stories of women, who have survived. Her storytelling is wrought with pain and suffering. But whether or not she accomplishes anything is of little consequence, because at least, ladies, she tried.
I thought this was an amazing story. However, I wasn’t sure if this story was for Lisa or if this story was for the women of Congo. I suppose any memoir, by nature, is self centered, so I can’t necessarily fault the author on that basis. But many times her narrative sure seemed to slide toward the, “Wow – look at what I am doing to save the World!” attitude, which was distasteful. Also, I will never get used to what author Bernice McFadden calls writing from “white privilege” this notion of white people writing as advocates for blackness. Even though she is referring to fiction, I had this overriding feeling of “white-man going in to save the savages” with this book. I’m sure that wasn’t the author’s intent and it was my own hang up, but it tripped me up on occasion. Also, there was a typo – my biggest pet peeve ever – she used STATIONARY when refereeing to writing paper instead of STATIONERY. Ugh! I wish I could remember the page, but trust me, it’s there.
This was a worthy account to bring focus on the tragedy of the Congo – but for a book, Left to Tell is infinitely better in telling a survivor’s story from the point of view of the survivor (and directly related to the Congo, by telling the story of the Rwandan genocide).
A Thousand Sisters is an emotional, grueling, upsetting personal account of Lisa’s attempt to make change. She spends 5 weeks in the Congo befriending and listening to the horror stories of women, who have survived. Her storytelling is wrought with pain and suffering. But whether or not she accomplishes anything is of little consequence, because at least, ladies, she tried.
I thought this was an amazing story. However, I wasn’t sure if this story was for Lisa or if this story was for the women of Congo. I suppose any memoir, by nature, is self centered, so I can’t necessarily fault the author on that basis. But many times her narrative sure seemed to slide toward the, “Wow – look at what I am doing to save the World!” attitude, which was distasteful. Also, I will never get used to what author Bernice McFadden calls writing from “white privilege” this notion of white people writing as advocates for blackness. Even though she is referring to fiction, I had this overriding feeling of “white-man going in to save the savages” with this book. I’m sure that wasn’t the author’s intent and it was my own hang up, but it tripped me up on occasion. Also, there was a typo – my biggest pet peeve ever – she used STATIONARY when refereeing to writing paper instead of STATIONERY. Ugh! I wish I could remember the page, but trust me, it’s there.
This was a worthy account to bring focus on the tragedy of the Congo – but for a book, Left to Tell is infinitely better in telling a survivor’s story from the point of view of the survivor (and directly related to the Congo, by telling the story of the Rwandan genocide).