A review by seyoban
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I appreciate how effectively this book explored the brutality of war and the very visceral descriptions were uncomfortable to read. The discomfort felt almost refreshing compared to some of the poetic, flowery descriptions that you can come across in other Greek retellings and it was interesting that the final page pretty much directly stated that this was Barker’s intention with the book. 

The dialogue took me right out of it though. The modern Yorkshire twang of the speech was so jarring and not a stylistic choice that worked for me, but I can kinda see how it could appeal to others in bringing some realism to the characters. With Barker herself being from Yorkshire, I can also understand why she took her approach - after all, why should all characters in historical fiction be represented through only more formal English without any regional dialects included? But yeah, I feel like I would have preferred more immersive dialogue. 

I didn’t find the characters particularly likeable but I don’t have an issue with that and felt it was good writing - I don’t really expect people who have been through 10 deeply traumatic years of warfare to be likeable yknow. 

So overall not my favourite but good enough that I’ll be picking up the sequel soon