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serendipitysbooks's review
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Harmattan is the story of Haoua, a young girl living in a remote village in Niger. When we first meet her she lives with her parents and two younger siblings in a mostly happy and stable environment. She’s bright and curious, fortunate to be able to attend school due to foreign sponsorship. The letters, postcards and small gifts from her sponsors offer her a glimpse of another life. But then several crucial things change for Haoua, and her dreams are wrenched from her. This, sadly, is not a story with a happy ending.
Many aspects of this story will be familiar to readers. The impact of the AIDS epidemic on families, the barriers to girl’s education, the ramifications of a mother’s death on young children - especially daughters, and of course child marriages are sadly well known. However, Weston has packaged them in readable story with a compelling protagonist. In addition he explores the mixed impact and limits of aid agencies and child sponsorship, areas he has been personally involved with, and which have inspired this story. The hostility towards aid workers, the ability of agencies to leave when things got difficult, and the well meaning but naive cluelessness of sponsors were just a few of the points that stood out to me. Weston also has Haoua’s story play out against a period of political turmoil in Niger, which adds another layer to the story.
A solid if depressing read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Rape
Moderate: Colonisation, Murder, and War
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