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A review by shannon97
The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga
5.0
“Mama, I wasn’t there to cover your body, and all I have left is words - words in a language you didn’t understand - to do as you asked. And I’m all alone with my feeble words, and on the pages of my notebook, over and over, my sentences weave a shroud for your missing body.”
This book is a beautiful, loving tribute to the author’s mother, the Tutsi people and the traditions and way of life that exile and genocide tried so hard to erase. Mukasonga describes the way her mother - and so many other Tutsi women - worked so hard to hold together a community exiled from their home and facing an ever-present threat of violence. Her prose is both heartbreaking and beautiful.
This book is a beautiful, loving tribute to the author’s mother, the Tutsi people and the traditions and way of life that exile and genocide tried so hard to erase. Mukasonga describes the way her mother - and so many other Tutsi women - worked so hard to hold together a community exiled from their home and facing an ever-present threat of violence. Her prose is both heartbreaking and beautiful.