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A review by itsnikhat
The Beekeeper of Sinjar by Dunya Mikhail
3.0
Rating: 3.5
I’m a bit unsure about how I feel about this book. It is a collection of the Yazidi women who were caught by the Daesh as their villages were taken over by them. Every transcribed interview is harrowing on its own. I was left feeling nauseated by the details that the women shared. Each woman has a similar story and yet you don’t get used to reading it. The Beekeeper of Sinjar, Abdullah, starts a network to help captives — men, women, and children — escape from the Daesh. The author is in contact with Abdullah, and many of the stories we read are through him. In the middle of the book, we also learn about the author’s links with Iraq and her memories of it before the war changed it.
The reason why I’m unsure about this is because of the narration. There was something very off with it that left me disconnected with the people. This book felt more like a draft than a published work. I wish there was some sort of connectivity, or the way manner of the stories which Abdullah shared was different. We see the author break into poetry, disconnect from the interviews to her personal experiences throughout the book and that left me with a lack of interest with the story. However, I absolutely believe that these stories need to be told, the plights of they people suffering/who suffered under the Daesh need to b highlighted but I wish it had been done in a different format.
Despite my off feelings about the way the book is written, I recommend you read the book anyway if only to be aware and hear the Yazidis and remember them.
I’m a bit unsure about how I feel about this book. It is a collection of the Yazidi women who were caught by the Daesh as their villages were taken over by them. Every transcribed interview is harrowing on its own. I was left feeling nauseated by the details that the women shared. Each woman has a similar story and yet you don’t get used to reading it. The Beekeeper of Sinjar, Abdullah, starts a network to help captives — men, women, and children — escape from the Daesh. The author is in contact with Abdullah, and many of the stories we read are through him. In the middle of the book, we also learn about the author’s links with Iraq and her memories of it before the war changed it.
The reason why I’m unsure about this is because of the narration. There was something very off with it that left me disconnected with the people. This book felt more like a draft than a published work. I wish there was some sort of connectivity, or the way manner of the stories which Abdullah shared was different. We see the author break into poetry, disconnect from the interviews to her personal experiences throughout the book and that left me with a lack of interest with the story. However, I absolutely believe that these stories need to be told, the plights of they people suffering/who suffered under the Daesh need to b highlighted but I wish it had been done in a different format.
Despite my off feelings about the way the book is written, I recommend you read the book anyway if only to be aware and hear the Yazidis and remember them.