Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by tolintook
The Unwomanly Face of War: An Oral History of Women in World War II by Svetlana Alexiévich
5.0
The experiences of war described in this book are extremely varied, from harrowing to more hopeful and extraordinary feats of willpower, courage, and tolerance to pain. I did not know about the daily atrocities committed in World War II beyond concentration camps and ghettos (the atrocities there were, of course, horrendous). The daily atrocities described here mostly focus on Germans as perpetrators, but some Russian as well. I found it difficult to read through, but it is important that this is documented and for people to collectively remember what happened in this war, as many of the women who gave their testimonies stated.
I think to understand the many other themes in this book, I’d need to read this again, and I am not against re-reading this. There is much else beyond the atrocities/tortures/humiliations, but this first time I was reading this, it was the atrocities that stood out. Processing such disturbing actions will take some time, before I am ready to return to this. I have not read something before that led to so much physical nausea in myself.
In addition, I appreciated the reflections on the ‘qualitative research process’, although Alexievich uses more artistic ways of describing it than that! This book is also exemplary in how Alexievich did qualitative research that was meaningful for participants and that has broad value for understanding critical aspects of social life, specifically atrocities of war and confronting sexism.
I think to understand the many other themes in this book, I’d need to read this again, and I am not against re-reading this. There is much else beyond the atrocities/tortures/humiliations, but this first time I was reading this, it was the atrocities that stood out. Processing such disturbing actions will take some time, before I am ready to return to this. I have not read something before that led to so much physical nausea in myself.
In addition, I appreciated the reflections on the ‘qualitative research process’, although Alexievich uses more artistic ways of describing it than that! This book is also exemplary in how Alexievich did qualitative research that was meaningful for participants and that has broad value for understanding critical aspects of social life, specifically atrocities of war and confronting sexism.