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my_plant_library's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Cancer, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Infidelity and Miscarriage
Minor: Rape
jackelz's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
Kirabo lives with her grandparents because her mother abandoned her as a baby and her father works in the city. As a 12-year-old girl, she begins to question who her mother is.
We see Kirabo with her friend, their eventual falling out, her first love, her life in Catholic boarding school, and her discovery of what it means to be a woman in a patriarchal society.
This book encompasses fundamental issues affecting women in Ugandan society, including skin bleaching, trafficking, polygamy, colonialism, and Ugandan folklore and superstitions around women. I loved learning about Ugandan culture and history, and the beautiful storytelling.
“My grandmothers called it kweluma. That is when oppressed people turn on each other or on themselves and bite. It is as a form of relief. If you cannot bite your oppressor, you bite yourself.”
mwenkanonkano: a Luganda word that loosely translates as feminism, but this concept is older, local, not something imported from the west
“Any mwenkanonkano is radical. Talk about equality and men fall in epileptic fits.”
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexism, and Misogyny
Minor: Abandonment, Cancer, and Death
sarahholliday's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I really loved this book.
What started as a tightly wound story unfolded into a stunning, complex epic covering the multifaceted nature of feminism, colonialism, authoritarianism, education, love, friendships, rumors, self-preservation, family dynamics and more.
If I have any criticism it's that I think the work as a whole would've benefitted from a bit more editing. But overall, I think Makumbi has created something truly great.
What started as a tightly wound story unfolded into a stunning, complex epic covering the multifaceted nature of feminism, colonialism, authoritarianism, education, love, friendships, rumors, self-preservation, family dynamics and more.
If I have any criticism it's that I think the work as a whole would've benefitted from a bit more editing. But overall, I think Makumbi has created something truly great.
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Infidelity, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexual content, and Slavery
Moderate: Miscarriage
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