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A review by sophiesometimesreads
A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
That ending absolutely broke my heart ðŸ˜
Please check content warnings before reading as this book deals with a lot of heavy topics.
I went through a whole host of emotions reading this. I hated the characters, loved the characters, felt for them, was sad, frustrated, disappointed. This is a primarily character-driven story and so the flawed nature of every character was so real. This is what really drew the story along, seeing how the characters develop and change and grow (or don't) throughout the story.
I found the writing style easy to follow and understand. It's not flowery, by any means, but it was a readable book that drew me in and kept me interested. Some of the writing was a little repetitive at times, but it highlighted the circular nature of the thoughts and worries of the characters in the book and their inability to break the cycle of oppression and abuse, so it felt more like a literary device than anything else and didn't bother me.
The story was heartbreaking and beautiful and ugly and hopeful all at once, and I think I'll be thinking about this book for a long time to come.
I have seen low ratings of this book as it "does not depict the whole Palestinian American experience". Whilst I understand this statement and can't comment on how accurate the representation is, the book does not say at any point that this is the experience of all, or even a majority, of Palestinians or Palestinian Americans, and it does mention multiple times how their family is the more conservative of the community and that a lot of other people around them are happier and have more freedom. This is the story of one family who happens to be Palestinian American, and reflects the author's own lived experiences, though perhaps this could've been highlighted a bit more.
Please check content warnings before reading as this book deals with a lot of heavy topics.
I went through a whole host of emotions reading this. I hated the characters, loved the characters, felt for them, was sad, frustrated, disappointed. This is a primarily character-driven story and so the flawed nature of every character was so real. This is what really drew the story along, seeing how the characters develop and change and grow (or don't) throughout the story.
I found the writing style easy to follow and understand. It's not flowery, by any means, but it was a readable book that drew me in and kept me interested. Some of the writing was a little repetitive at times, but it highlighted the circular nature of the thoughts and worries of the characters in the book and their inability to break the cycle of oppression and abuse, so it felt more like a literary device than anything else and didn't bother me.
The story was heartbreaking and beautiful and ugly and hopeful all at once, and I think I'll be thinking about this book for a long time to come.
I have seen low ratings of this book as it "does not depict the whole Palestinian American experience". Whilst I understand this statement and can't comment on how accurate the representation is, the book does not say at any point that this is the experience of all, or even a majority, of Palestinians or Palestinian Americans, and it does mention multiple times how their family is the more conservative of the community and that a lot of other people around them are happier and have more freedom. This is the story of one family who happens to be Palestinian American, and reflects the author's own lived experiences, though perhaps this could've been highlighted a bit more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, and Murder