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A review by bizzybee429
A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena
4.0
Review Trigger Warning: Rape mention
A Girl Like That starts off with the death of its main characters, Zarin and Porus (and I promise that’s not a spoiler, it literally happens on the first page). In the pages that follow, the novel goes back in time and tells their stories, as well as the stories of the people around them. This book reminded me of The Book Thief, in that even though the reader knows how the story is going to end from the first chapter, the climax still comes as a shock. I’m pretty sure I sat there with my hand over my mouth in surprise for a good five minutes when Zarin and Porus died at the end.
The pacing in this book is utterly superb. It has what, like, seven chapters? Each chapter is split into 2-4 sections, each with a different narrator, and the paragraphs in each section flow super well without any breaks in them. It makes for a well-written and quick read, and made the tough subjects covered in the book not as scary.
And this book covered a crap-ton of tough topics. It was interesting to read about rape culture, racism, colorism, and feminism in a different backdrop than Western Culture. A Girl Like That was real, and I didn’t expect it to reach the level of grittiness that it did. It was painful to read at times, and every bit of it packed a punch.
The characters were all complex and nuanced. Sometimes they weren’t likable, but they weren’t supposed to be. Zarin was a kick-butt protagonist and I loved reading her and Porus’s relationship progress. Porus was super sweet. Mishal was another character that I enjoyed reading about – and though I didn’t really like her as a person a lot of the time, I always enjoyed the chapters that were from her point of view, and it made my heart content to see at least one of the narrators of the story receive a future and some semblance of a happy ending.
The romance in this story was so freaking cute. Though I’m not sure if it can be really called a romance, it was so sweet to watch Porus and Zarin grow up and become friends and it absolutely kills me that both of their stories were cut off so abruptly. I hope they get to be buddies in the afterlife because the ending of this book ripped my heart out and beat it to death.
To conclude, definitely pick this one up next February. The heartbreak it will give you is so worth it for the beautiful characters, top-notch pacing, and sweet relationship.
Book Trigger Warnings: Rape, Rape with the aid of a Date Rape drug, sexual assault, parental abuse, spousal abuse (mentioned)
”’When people say you’re wrong so many times over so many years, when they call you a bad person, you begin to believe them…But then you realize – who are these people anyway, who make you feel ashamed of yourself? Do they even matter? Do you even care what they think or say?’”A Girl Like That is one of the most hyped releases of early 2018, and after reading it, it’s easy to see why. This story not only lived up to my expectations, it completely blew them out of the water.
A Girl Like That starts off with the death of its main characters, Zarin and Porus (and I promise that’s not a spoiler, it literally happens on the first page). In the pages that follow, the novel goes back in time and tells their stories, as well as the stories of the people around them. This book reminded me of The Book Thief, in that even though the reader knows how the story is going to end from the first chapter, the climax still comes as a shock. I’m pretty sure I sat there with my hand over my mouth in surprise for a good five minutes when Zarin and Porus died at the end.
The pacing in this book is utterly superb. It has what, like, seven chapters? Each chapter is split into 2-4 sections, each with a different narrator, and the paragraphs in each section flow super well without any breaks in them. It makes for a well-written and quick read, and made the tough subjects covered in the book not as scary.
And this book covered a crap-ton of tough topics. It was interesting to read about rape culture, racism, colorism, and feminism in a different backdrop than Western Culture. A Girl Like That was real, and I didn’t expect it to reach the level of grittiness that it did. It was painful to read at times, and every bit of it packed a punch.
The characters were all complex and nuanced. Sometimes they weren’t likable, but they weren’t supposed to be. Zarin was a kick-butt protagonist and I loved reading her and Porus’s relationship progress. Porus was super sweet. Mishal was another character that I enjoyed reading about – and though I didn’t really like her as a person a lot of the time, I always enjoyed the chapters that were from her point of view, and it made my heart content to see at least one of the narrators of the story receive a future and some semblance of a happy ending.
The romance in this story was so freaking cute. Though I’m not sure if it can be really called a romance, it was so sweet to watch Porus and Zarin grow up and become friends and it absolutely kills me that both of their stories were cut off so abruptly. I hope they get to be buddies in the afterlife because the ending of this book ripped my heart out and beat it to death.
To conclude, definitely pick this one up next February. The heartbreak it will give you is so worth it for the beautiful characters, top-notch pacing, and sweet relationship.
Book Trigger Warnings: Rape, Rape with the aid of a Date Rape drug, sexual assault, parental abuse, spousal abuse (mentioned)