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challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
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
Overall, I enjoyed this book. I liked getting to know the characters and I liked the narrative structure of a weekly “Lady Whistledown”-esque newsletter. I didn’t find the ending quite satisfying though, because I still wanted to know who the writer is and wanted to know what happens to Michelle and Gamrah
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Abandonment
Moderate: Confinement, Homophobia, Infidelity, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy
Minor: Cursing, Drug use, Fatphobia, Infertility, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Death of parent
The double standard between men and women in Saudi society is a theme throughout the book.
A character is disparaged by her community for having an “effeminate” son.
A Shi’ite minority family is shunned by their Sunni community.
Suspicion is raised against a character by her love interest’s family because her last name doesn’t clearly indelicate where her family is from.
A character secretly makes fun of a full-figured bride in her wedding dress.
Some pejorative comments made by some characters about certain ethnic groups in Saudi Arabia.
Several mentions of shisha.
A couple uses of “wh*re” and similar words.
Mention of a character’s mother dying before the book takes place.
A minor character and her husband secretly adopt a child, because she is infertile.
A character tries to save her marriage through pregnancy.
One character is slapped by her husband after she discovers his affair and insults his mistress.
Two characters are abandoned by their husbands (one of whom is pregnant).
One character is manipulated by a love interest into correcting her behaviour in order to please him.
A character rekindles a relationship with an ex days before he marries another woman.
A divorcee is (mostly) kept at home by her family so she won’t bring shame on them by being in public. She mourns the loss of her marriage prospects.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Girls of Riyadh is a testament to fact that girlhood and female friendships are universal. It’s not always easy to see the struggles that these four ladies face, but it’s nice to see how they get through it. I feel like some of the power of the writing is lost in translation, but it is a pretty good read. Like Gossip girl meets sex and the city.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I found this book quite enjoyable. The voice of the author is written as e-mails to tell the story so the flow of book and the way it's written could be argued to be stylistic rather than the authentic voice and work of the author themselves. I'd have to read more of her work before determining if I'd rate this lower for the writing itself.
The characters, however, were very diverse yet fun. I found Gamrah's self-pity and unfounded pride to be annoying, but her situation was understandable and realistic. Lamees was such a cutie and a nice bubbly personality that I found refreshing against all the blue moods of the other girls. I loved her ending and was so happy for her! Michelle was an interesting character to bring in the Western perspective against the Saudi culture directly as she was originally living in the U.S.A. before moving to Saudi Arabia. Sadeem I felt so bad for as she kept getting screwed over but she never let it stop her - just slow her down for a while.
The themes of this book are love, relationship, marriage and divorce, and the value of female friendships and support networks. The e-mail format that a lot of readers found pointless actually helped to add additional commentary to these themes outside the story told by the characters to paint a target on one of the topics to provide an opposing argument that exists in the Saudi culture which is either held by a majority of people, men, or people from a particular sect.
Overall, I thought that Al-Sanea did well in how she decided to paint this story with constant entertainment that made me want to grab a bowl of popcorn while also engaging in some serious topics that are important to the women of Saudi Arabia.
The characters, however, were very diverse yet fun. I found Gamrah's self-pity and unfounded pride to be annoying, but her situation was understandable and realistic. Lamees was such a cutie and a nice bubbly personality that I found refreshing against all the blue moods of the other girls. I loved her ending and was so happy for her! Michelle was an interesting character to bring in the Western perspective against the Saudi culture directly as she was originally living in the U.S.A. before moving to Saudi Arabia. Sadeem I felt so bad for as she kept getting screwed over but she never let it stop her - just slow her down for a while.
The themes of this book are love, relationship, marriage and divorce, and the value of female friendships and support networks. The e-mail format that a lot of readers found pointless actually helped to add additional commentary to these themes outside the story told by the characters to paint a target on one of the topics to provide an opposing argument that exists in the Saudi culture which is either held by a majority of people, men, or people from a particular sect.
Overall, I thought that Al-Sanea did well in how she decided to paint this story with constant entertainment that made me want to grab a bowl of popcorn while also engaging in some serious topics that are important to the women of Saudi Arabia.
Moderate: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Alcohol, Classism
Minor: Fatphobia
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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:
Complicated
I love how The StoryGraph’s translated fiction challenge expands my horizons! This sweet novel was a fun ride, like a Saudi version of Sex and the City. It also had major Bridgerton vibes with the secret identity storyteller giving us all the hot gossip. I really appreciated how seamlessly the narrator included the footnotes, which helped me better understand elements of the Saudi Arabian culture. I can also tell the writer worked very closely with the translator. I didn’t love how the author’s introduction told me what she wanted me to feel after reading this, but damn it she was totally spot on! (I’m just a stubborn Aries sometimes lol.) I know Saudi culture, especially for women, is externally very different than here in America. But internally, we’re all humans wanting to love and be loved. Despite our differences, these relationships were so relatable at their core. In the early 2000’s, I too could feel that double standard where I was expected to be smart and capable, but not too independent and outspoken, so as to not threaten or intimidate men. I too came up against that bullshit “sexy/slutty” boundary. I have a lot of love for these characters, as they explored these issues in their own lives in a deeply patriarchal society.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Minor: Death of parent, Pregnancy