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A review by gab_rielle
No Country Woman by Zoya Patel
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
2.75
I remember starting this book years ago and really enjoying it. However, my friend lost my copy so I was only able to finish it this year and I have a very different perspective. The book is fine but I have some critiques.
I think the book doesn't read as a cohesive novel, it reads as a selection of articles you would find in a university magazine. All interesting and you can see the deep thinking but it lacks the originality of thought and understanding of others. It feels like reading every other undergraduate essay from first year.
I kept wanting the author to both step away from her experience and dive deeper. I think the author also came across as very young and had a lot of youngest child syndrome. She talked at length about her experiences with her culture and her family but rarely mentioned their opinion or their thoughts. It sounded selfish in a way even though I could see the references to her constant concern for her family so it was a weird juxtaposition.
I could see that the author had engaged with some big cultural texts but hadn't really explained them to the reader. I knew the texts from my own research and studies but because she didn't ground them, they just came across as references that reinforced the authors privilege. Which was weird to experience while reading of the difficulties this author had faced.
Overall, I think that the book had merit but lacked the depth it needed for the subject matter. I think it is a strong debut but there needs something to ground it further.
I think the book doesn't read as a cohesive novel, it reads as a selection of articles you would find in a university magazine. All interesting and you can see the deep thinking but it lacks the originality of thought and understanding of others. It feels like reading every other undergraduate essay from first year.
I kept wanting the author to both step away from her experience and dive deeper. I think the author also came across as very young and had a lot of youngest child syndrome. She talked at length about her experiences with her culture and her family but rarely mentioned their opinion or their thoughts. It sounded selfish in a way even though I could see the references to her constant concern for her family so it was a weird juxtaposition.
I could see that the author had engaged with some big cultural texts but hadn't really explained them to the reader. I knew the texts from my own research and studies but because she didn't ground them, they just came across as references that reinforced the authors privilege. Which was weird to experience while reading of the difficulties this author had faced.
Overall, I think that the book had merit but lacked the depth it needed for the subject matter. I think it is a strong debut but there needs something to ground it further.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia