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dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
My star rating rubric includes a one star review, withheld for books I consider damaging or harmful - a rating I’ve rarely given in recent memory but seriously considered applying to this book. The occasional lyric beauty of the prose and ambition of the plot saved it from complete ignominy, but not by much.
I have a lot of problems with this book, but chief among them is the sheer numbing gratuitousness of the cruelty and violence portrayed. Rao makes her point within the first few pages of the novel - that being a girl, and perhaps especially an Indian girl of low class and caste, is dangerous and makes one vulnerable to a host of potential abuses - but she then spends 300+ pages just beating the reader over the head with this same and minimally-developed thesis.
Furthermore, I took issue with the fact that the Indian-in-India perpetrators of these abuses were written as ghoulishly evil, venal and apparently cruel for cruelty’s sake (stopping just short of mustache-twirling), whereas once the storyline takes us to the US, an attempt is suddenly made to write the Indian-in-America abusers with some level of nuance. Yes, they’re still (spoilers) alcoholics, rapists, and literal enslavers, but with a poet’s heart of gold, dammit! You’d become a human trafficker too if you’d grown up in Idaho being called the Curry Kid! (Gag)
It’s hard to ignore that apart from the two protagonists, virtually the only characters who display any kindness (and this too in a caricaturish fashion) are white Americans. As an Indian American myself (Rao, per her bio, moved with her family to the US from India at age 7), I can’t not prickle at this insinuation - whether intended or not - of our people as uniquely selfish and profit-motivated. Indians and their/our culture are depicted nearly-exclusively as mean and violently money-obsessed, without rationale or redemption, nor with any attempt to give social, political, or economic context for this culture as it is depicted.
This is what felt, at points in reading, dangerous to me about this book: I will never say that the portrayal in American literature of a non-American culture isn’t worth contributing unless it’s positive, nor suggest that all diasporic writers need be ambassadors for their communities. But when a book with as stark and unrelenting a take as this is not only written but elevated within literary circles, an unfamiliar reader could be forgiven for walking away with the seeds of certain prejudices.
While there are snatches of the writing which do adeptly describe beautiful things about what it’s like to exist in India, even these (the pillowy fluff of a strand of jasmine flowers, the delight of being caught in a sudden monsoon downpour) largely evoke the stereotype-dense writing of what I call the “mangos, arranged marriage, and melancholy” 80s-00’s - a period during which our only options for subcontinental fiction seemed to be The Interpreter of Maladies or one of Suzanne Fisher Staples’ exotifying oeuvre. Rao is clearly a writer of some significant talent, and has an aptitude for capturing a depth of feeling (mostly impotent rage) in her prose, but despite her efforts the excessiveness of the violence eventually keeps the reader from caring, and the reunion plot towards the end repeatedly strains belief. In my opinion this book was its strongest when describing landscape. For a novel that was, at its heart, trying to tell us about society and relationships, this is a problem.
I have a lot of problems with this book, but chief among them is the sheer numbing gratuitousness of the cruelty and violence portrayed. Rao makes her point within the first few pages of the novel - that being a girl, and perhaps especially an Indian girl of low class and caste, is dangerous and makes one vulnerable to a host of potential abuses - but she then spends 300+ pages just beating the reader over the head with this same and minimally-developed thesis.
Furthermore, I took issue with the fact that the Indian-in-India perpetrators of these abuses were written as ghoulishly evil, venal and apparently cruel for cruelty’s sake (stopping just short of mustache-twirling), whereas once the storyline takes us to the US, an attempt is suddenly made to write the Indian-in-America abusers with some level of nuance. Yes, they’re still (spoilers) alcoholics, rapists, and literal enslavers, but with a poet’s heart of gold, dammit! You’d become a human trafficker too if you’d grown up in Idaho being called the Curry Kid! (Gag)
It’s hard to ignore that apart from the two protagonists, virtually the only characters who display any kindness (and this too in a caricaturish fashion) are white Americans. As an Indian American myself (Rao, per her bio, moved with her family to the US from India at age 7), I can’t not prickle at this insinuation - whether intended or not - of our people as uniquely selfish and profit-motivated. Indians and their/our culture are depicted nearly-exclusively as mean and violently money-obsessed, without rationale or redemption, nor with any attempt to give social, political, or economic context for this culture as it is depicted.
This is what felt, at points in reading, dangerous to me about this book: I will never say that the portrayal in American literature of a non-American culture isn’t worth contributing unless it’s positive, nor suggest that all diasporic writers need be ambassadors for their communities. But when a book with as stark and unrelenting a take as this is not only written but elevated within literary circles, an unfamiliar reader could be forgiven for walking away with the seeds of certain prejudices.
While there are snatches of the writing which do adeptly describe beautiful things about what it’s like to exist in India, even these (the pillowy fluff of a strand of jasmine flowers, the delight of being caught in a sudden monsoon downpour) largely evoke the stereotype-dense writing of what I call the “mangos, arranged marriage, and melancholy” 80s-00’s - a period during which our only options for subcontinental fiction seemed to be The Interpreter of Maladies or one of Suzanne Fisher Staples’ exotifying oeuvre. Rao is clearly a writer of some significant talent, and has an aptitude for capturing a depth of feeling (mostly impotent rage) in her prose, but despite her efforts the excessiveness of the violence eventually keeps the reader from caring, and the reunion plot towards the end repeatedly strains belief. In my opinion this book was its strongest when describing landscape. For a novel that was, at its heart, trying to tell us about society and relationships, this is a problem.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Slavery, Trafficking
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This would’ve been a 4-5 star read however the ending was awful and anticlimactic. The author should’ve gone one or two more paragraphs. This book is extremely dark and hard to read at most times. Story is mostly rewarding.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Beautiful writing, devastating story, unsatisfying ending
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping
Moderate: Drug use, Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism
Unfortunately the storytelling didn’t work for me. So many cruel things were happening to the main characters, and I understand that the author is showing how poor women in India are treated, but it was hard for me to see what was happening to them. I also didn’t feel connected enough to the main characters to keep reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Emotional abuse
Moderate: Drug use, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Trafficking
dark
emotional
sad
medium-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
A heart-wrenching story with so many almost-could-be-true elements that you ache for the characters as you read.
Rao really makes you choose your own ending, as she gives you pieces of the setting and atmosphere that are so similar that make you believe that it is possible that it actually will turn out ok for Savitha and Poornima. It still isn't definite closure, you still end the book unsure that they are back together. I'm still asking the question: will they be ok?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Drug use, Rape
dark
emotional
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:
No
This book is absolutely heart-wrenching.
It contains a beautiful friendship, but it contains even more horrible people. There is so much pain written into this book, so many things happened that should not happen. Girls Burn Brightermakes you fall in love with Poornima and Savitha and then shows what the world does to women, to Indian women, to poor women, to strong-willed woman. The world, in case you have forgotten, is a dark and cruel place and so many people are selfish animals.
So while I didn’t enjoy reading Girls Burn Brighter for all the pain and rage it left me with, I deeply, deeply appreciated this book. It’s a character-driven novel about two young women who meet as teenagers and are separated by cruelty and happenstance. Rao takes her time in the beginning, luring the reader into a false sense of security where you know life’s difficult, but there is hope for a happy ending. Then it’s all downhill from there. In this way, Girls Burn Brighter is both a journey and a reminder that more often than not, endings are sadder than we want and the journeys are difficult and we are so privileged to be reading this book and not going through life in the same way as these young women.
Girls Burn Brighter left me with a lot to think about.
There are all sorts of traumatic events in this pages of the book, so before picking it up, make sure to check for content warnings. Off the top of my head, there is rape, sexual assault, human trafficking, prostitution, kidnapping, slavery (of a sort), physical abuse, emotional abuse… Girls Burn Brighter is filled with different levels of trauma and it is really important to check in with yourself and come prepared, otherwise I can see how this book could be triggering.
It’s a book I couldn’t put down – both because of the story and because I think Soneela Nankani did an excellent job reading it. You are brought so easily into the world, especially through Savitha’s POV where there is so much joy in both food and textiles. The writing is excellent – this is a sparkling debut novel and puts Rao on my “To Watch” list. The writing is lyrical but direct, and the story is an important one.
It’s not the type of book that’s going to leave you feeling good, but it’s a powerful, emotional story and I highly recommend it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent
Moderate: Ableism, Racism, Medical content
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this was so much more graphic and traumatic a story than i was expecting, and although it was so hard to read, i admire what the book brought to light and the writing was truly lovely, the characters more than admirable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief
Minor: Racism