Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

They Called Me a Lioness: A Palestinian Girl's Fight for Freedom by Dena Takruri, Ahed Tamimi

29 reviews

corsetedfeminist's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative fast-paced

5.0

I genuinely don't know how to begin to write a review for this book. 

In many ways, this book is both to story of a girl forced to be an activist far before her time, and the story of her people, her country, both during her life and before. 

I expected to cry, but I didn't- I just felt the deep ache of the story- of injuries, deaths, imprisonment, and the deep grief of colonization stealing your land. It almost feels like a crime to even try to summarize events that Ahed describes in such sorrow infused bluntness. 

However, I will mention two parts of the book that hit deeply- firstly, her account of finishing her senior year of high school while in an Israeli prison for slapping a solider, including one of her fellow prisoners wrangling a course in international law for the girls to take. The description of the girls slowly realizing that what had happened to them was not only wrong, but illegal, broke me, especially balanced with their understanding that those international laws can't help them. Secondly, Ahed ends the book, despite the grim reality she is writing in, with a firm belief that Palestine will be free in her lifetime, and a poignant description of the joy and elation that will sweep the country when that freedom is won. I often struggle to hold onto hope for the future, and I didn't grow up under apartheid, so seeing her strength was incredibly inspiring. 

All in all, I would go so far as to consider this book required reading for anyone looking to understand Palestine and support the Palestinal resistance.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

moonyreadsbystarlight's review

emotional informative reflective tense

5.0

Such a powerful story! Well-written and engaging, it tells the horrific experience of living under apartheid and, as a child, facing crimes against humanity. An important read for context of what continues to happen in Palestine, and made me think a lot about  prison writing more broadly (this wasn't written IN prison, but details her time there a lot)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, War, and Injury/Injury detail

amaranth_wytch's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring fast-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Mental illness, Sexism, and Sexual harassment

kshertz's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

4.5

What an incredible memoir. It’s so hard to hear but so important. She is so reflective and her life story is incredible. Especially her time in prison. I also appreciate how she talked about afterwards. I think everyone should read the story to get an understanding of Palestine and the conflict as well as what the children of Palestine have been through. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail

aishakare's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

zombiezami's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Misogyny, Vomit, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Mental illness and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

ckingcolorado's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring sad medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Torture, Grief, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Blood, and Sexual harassment

goddessofwhatnot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

This book should be required reading in all high/secondary schools in the world.

‘They Called Me a Lioness’ is by far the most accessible book I’ve yet to read about the Palestinian struggle and life under Israeli occupation.  All relevant aspects of the issue are addressed (including historical, political, legal, cultural, etc), all from the first person perspective of a teenaged Palestinian girl.

If I were to try to introduce someone to the subject of Palestine, I would first have them look up “the Nakba,” then I would immediately hand them a copy of this book!
✨10/10 stars ✨ 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Racism, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

dragongirl271's review

challenging emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Violence, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Death and Torture

leweylibrary's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

It took me a long time because of work to feel like I was in a place mentally where I could handle this book, and I'm glad I waited. There were some things I knew, but so many things that I learned reading this book. I really appreciated the pov of someone who is Palestinian and lived there their whole life and is such an activist. I saw so much of our students in her and her story and the way she talks about this conflict, even before it ramped up in 2023. I think it would be very hard for anyone to read this book and be pro-Israel still. Part of me feels a little bit like something about the voice felt off, but I know that's just because the journalist wrote the story (and narrated the audiobook) with Ahed and translation was necessary, so it's fair. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, Murder, and War

Moderate: Gore, Sexual assault, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail