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christinerose's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Beautiful, lyrical and heartbreakingly sad
hannahbthornton's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Suicide
bookswherenothinghappens's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
tuma's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
samjeancoop's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.75
pilartyping's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I couldn’t stop reading this book; it felt so familiar reading the author’s words, imagining the narrator’s detached, but detailed, voice in my head.
This book isn’t just about the relationships between three orphaned & neglected young Muslim sisters coming of age on their own after their father is murdered by a stranger; it is also about the narrator/protagonist’s relationship with her/their own selves as she grows up wanting to please her well-meaning older sisters who are also dealing with the same (& other unspoken of) trauma(s), wanting to please their Uncle (their legal guardian) who stole their dead father’s money & calls them prostitutes, wanting to please the beautiful boy who doesn’t seem to recognize the pain he causes her. Because of all this people pleasing resulting from foggy ideas of wanting a real family, wanting safety/protection from danger, real & remembered, this book is also about dissociation, or that feeling we may get when we are watching ourselves act/perform (obedience usually) in ways we don’t agree with or recognize as ours; performing in ways that we have little, if any, executive control over.
I love this book so much because there is incredible character development of each of the major characters, & while there is no climactic “plot”, there is an unfolding of getting to know the youngest sister, Kausar, the narrator, deeply, & yet barely at all, because we don’t learn about her favorite school subjects or books; deeply bc what we read are mostly her inner thoughts, descriptions of what her other selves are doing, reacting (or not) to the walls that seem to be always closing in on her, except when she is unraveling.
I loved this writer’s book of poems, If They Come For Us, & genuinely feel blessed that she also wrote this most heartwarming, while also heartwrenching, novel that has so much life in the midst of all the death, detachment & numbing. It feels good to be seen & to see.
This book isn’t just about the relationships between three orphaned & neglected young Muslim sisters coming of age on their own after their father is murdered by a stranger; it is also about the narrator/protagonist’s relationship with her/their own selves as she grows up wanting to please her well-meaning older sisters who are also dealing with the same (& other unspoken of) trauma(s), wanting to please their Uncle (their legal guardian) who stole their dead father’s money & calls them prostitutes, wanting to please the beautiful boy who doesn’t seem to recognize the pain he causes her. Because of all this people pleasing resulting from foggy ideas of wanting a real family, wanting safety/protection from danger, real & remembered, this book is also about dissociation, or that feeling we may get when we are watching ourselves act/perform (obedience usually) in ways we don’t agree with or recognize as ours; performing in ways that we have little, if any, executive control over.
I love this book so much because there is incredible character development of each of the major characters, & while there is no climactic “plot”, there is an unfolding of getting to know the youngest sister, Kausar, the narrator, deeply, & yet barely at all, because we don’t learn about her favorite school subjects or books; deeply bc what we read are mostly her inner thoughts, descriptions of what her other selves are doing, reacting (or not) to the walls that seem to be always closing in on her, except when she is unraveling.
I loved this writer’s book of poems, If They Come For Us, & genuinely feel blessed that she also wrote this most heartwarming, while also heartwrenching, novel that has so much life in the midst of all the death, detachment & numbing. It feels good to be seen & to see.
mareikoe's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
dkouchel's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
yellowease's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
bogmanbugtime's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75