A review by vagrantheather
A Girl Named Disaster by Nancy Farmer

3.0

The best aspect of this book is that it's so heavy with culture and custom. I think it's vital for the target age range (probably 10-14 yrs old) to realize that other cultures' belief structures vary quite a bit from American culture. The main character of this book is from a traditional Shona village in northern Mozambique; her people believe in animism (every creature has a spirit with its own whims), sacrificing animals (such as when a family member dies), the influence of ancestral spirits on everyday life, polygamy, witchcraft (which is considered wicked), respecting elders, "totem animals" (IE Disaster is of the lion totem, because that's her father's totem, and it would be incest for her to marry someone of the lion totem. Also, eating the animal of one's totem is thought to curse you.), and myriad other folklore items. One of the most crucial aspects of the book is how Disaster views Christianity. A few other critiques have stated that this was offensive, but I think it's imperative that Christians are exposed to why other cultures don't convert. Nancy Farmer's young adult novel does this splendidly, showcasing what Disaster grew up believing and how it effected her interpretation of Jesus.

I'm not really certain why other rankers called this book "slow"... I guess it just depends how fascinated you are with other cultures. Personally, I found this book to be a page-turner, but I'm a known cultureaholic ;].