Scan barcode
A review by wesleysbookshelf
The Good Girls: An Ordinary Killing by Sonia Faleiro
4.0
The Good Girls: An Ordinary Killing by Sonia Faleiro
I am so glad to have come across this book. The first non-fiction book of the year came as a blessing. 2020 was not a good year all around, but specifically, it wasn't a good reading year either. I am glad that this book came to me and I was able to sit with it and finish reading it in less than a day. It is a piece of gripping literature. One of the best narrative non-fiction books I've read that relies on an honest journalistic outlook while also keeping a novelists eye for detail.
Throughout the book, Sonia Faleiro makes critical comments about various aspects about society, caste, Indian politics, criminal investigations, corruption (sometimes, all in one page it would seem).
The portraits of the people who played key roles are cutting and insightful. The manner is which she is able to keep an eye on caste and class differences and how these play up in the way people react are stunning.
At the heart of it, this book is a feminist text, as Deepa Anappara pointed out. Sonia Faleiro does not forget the women that mainstream media often sideline. She keeps the quite neighborhood women, their innocent little daughters, and the mother who descends into madness in the picture. They watch, and we watch with them how a small amount of thought is given to them. They are allowed very little room to grieve. She writes about the moment when the women decided to put themselves at the base of the tree where the girls hung and thereby registered protest and brought national media attention.
One of the best things about this book is how the writer does not let things get too technical. She is able to keep enough detail and ground her arguments and the narrative. For the dedicated reader, there are 20 pages of notes and bibliography to follow-up with. The writing also does not run the risk of having too much jargon. Lucidly written, the book is the product of four years, interviews with more than a hundred people, and reports that amounted to 3,272 pages. To say that it has been thoroughly researched, would be an understatement.
I am so glad to have come across this book. The first non-fiction book of the year came as a blessing. 2020 was not a good year all around, but specifically, it wasn't a good reading year either. I am glad that this book came to me and I was able to sit with it and finish reading it in less than a day. It is a piece of gripping literature. One of the best narrative non-fiction books I've read that relies on an honest journalistic outlook while also keeping a novelists eye for detail.
Throughout the book, Sonia Faleiro makes critical comments about various aspects about society, caste, Indian politics, criminal investigations, corruption (sometimes, all in one page it would seem).
The portraits of the people who played key roles are cutting and insightful. The manner is which she is able to keep an eye on caste and class differences and how these play up in the way people react are stunning.
At the heart of it, this book is a feminist text, as Deepa Anappara pointed out. Sonia Faleiro does not forget the women that mainstream media often sideline. She keeps the quite neighborhood women, their innocent little daughters, and the mother who descends into madness in the picture. They watch, and we watch with them how a small amount of thought is given to them. They are allowed very little room to grieve. She writes about the moment when the women decided to put themselves at the base of the tree where the girls hung and thereby registered protest and brought national media attention.
One of the best things about this book is how the writer does not let things get too technical. She is able to keep enough detail and ground her arguments and the narrative. For the dedicated reader, there are 20 pages of notes and bibliography to follow-up with. The writing also does not run the risk of having too much jargon. Lucidly written, the book is the product of four years, interviews with more than a hundred people, and reports that amounted to 3,272 pages. To say that it has been thoroughly researched, would be an understatement.