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A review by clarkf87
If I Tell You the Truth by Jasmin Kaur
5.0
“If I Tell You The Truth” by Jasmin Kaur
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This novel was intense, beautiful, lyrical, heart wrenching and so much more. The story is about an Indian woman, Kiran, who is sexually assaulted and flees to Canada to escape judgement and raise her child. Her daughter, Sahaara, takes over the second half of the book to share how she learns how she was conceived. It comes with a lot of trigger warnings, but this story is—hands down—worth all the stress and anxiety as you follow them on this journey toward justice.
The book was a mix between prose, poetry and illustrations in an intricate and intimate viewpoint of a refugee and her daughter.
A masterpiece of fiction.
****
Favorite passages:
he didn’t understand
that to sniff the petals of this fantasy
was to prick myself on its thorns
does it count if the sparks are different?
if there’s still a ghost of another boy
somewhere within you
made only of apricot-sweet memories
pink
juicy
no sign of the bruising or the rot?
I pass him both my and Mom’s documents and attempt the smile that every person of color has mastered. The one that reads, “I’m thoroughly nonthreatening. Please don’t pull me aside and racially profile me.”
nothing on Google maps could have prepared me
for the endless beauty of this jade terrain
…
isn’t it beautiful
the way rising up high
can make all our problems
seem so small?
“Aren’t we familiar with toxic fumes masked as beauty?”
Right now I do not touch the same earth where he dwells. Right now, we are out of his reach. But the moment of comfort is just that: a moment. A short-lived spark that dies, forcing my eyes to adjust to the darkness. I live in a world where powerful men can have the truth of their actions shined bright in their faces only to smile. Only to live comfortably in their bodies as if they cannot remember the violence. Only to teach the masses how to forget.
“This world makes us feel like our stories begin and end with men—the ones who want us or don’t want us or hurt us or love us. But if I’ve learned anything, it’s that happiness doesn’t need to hinge on the boy you end up with. … You can choose yourself, too.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This novel was intense, beautiful, lyrical, heart wrenching and so much more. The story is about an Indian woman, Kiran, who is sexually assaulted and flees to Canada to escape judgement and raise her child. Her daughter, Sahaara, takes over the second half of the book to share how she learns how she was conceived. It comes with a lot of trigger warnings, but this story is—hands down—worth all the stress and anxiety as you follow them on this journey toward justice.
The book was a mix between prose, poetry and illustrations in an intricate and intimate viewpoint of a refugee and her daughter.
A masterpiece of fiction.
****
Favorite passages:
he didn’t understand
that to sniff the petals of this fantasy
was to prick myself on its thorns
does it count if the sparks are different?
if there’s still a ghost of another boy
somewhere within you
made only of apricot-sweet memories
pink
juicy
no sign of the bruising or the rot?
I pass him both my and Mom’s documents and attempt the smile that every person of color has mastered. The one that reads, “I’m thoroughly nonthreatening. Please don’t pull me aside and racially profile me.”
nothing on Google maps could have prepared me
for the endless beauty of this jade terrain
…
isn’t it beautiful
the way rising up high
can make all our problems
seem so small?
“Aren’t we familiar with toxic fumes masked as beauty?”
Right now I do not touch the same earth where he dwells. Right now, we are out of his reach. But the moment of comfort is just that: a moment. A short-lived spark that dies, forcing my eyes to adjust to the darkness. I live in a world where powerful men can have the truth of their actions shined bright in their faces only to smile. Only to live comfortably in their bodies as if they cannot remember the violence. Only to teach the masses how to forget.
“This world makes us feel like our stories begin and end with men—the ones who want us or don’t want us or hurt us or love us. But if I’ve learned anything, it’s that happiness doesn’t need to hinge on the boy you end up with. … You can choose yourself, too.”