A review by boundlessbookwriting
I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Delphine Minoui, Nojoud Ali

5.0

One of the most beautiful memoirs I've ever read. I've never read a story like this before, and this book gives me so much insight into an issue that is covered up and hidden for the sake of pedophilic men's "honor" so they can rape and torture little girls without facing any repercussions of their actions.

Suddenly it was as if I'd been snatched up by a hurricane, flung around, struck by lightning, and I had no more strength to fight back. There was a peal of thunder, and another, and another--the sky was falling down on me, and it was then that something burning, a burning I had never felt before, invaded the deepest part of me. No matter how I screamed, no one came to help me. It hurt, awfully, and I was all alone to face the pain.

Nujood and Delphine do a great job telling this painfully traumatic story. Nujood is one of the few fighters against child marriage in Yemen, and she's a spectacular women's rights activist who wants to protect other young girls in her country from what happened to her. She was married without her consent, beaten, raped, and treated as if she were a mere servant, a slave, and an object. Her father sold her into marriage, and there was little to be done to oppose the decision.

I want Americans to read this book. We live in a so-called "first-world" country where people are so individualistic and self-absorbed to the point they show little to no care for others, even those within their own family. I'm sick of going on the internet and finding social media influencers crying about getting the wrong coffee or not finding clothes in their favorite color. Meanwhile, Nujood returns to the family who betrayed her after she divorces the monster, showing how tenderhearted and loving she is. She is there to protect her little sister, Haifa, from getting the same treatment she did.

This story should be read by every young girl. I'm allowed to be an author, rather than being forced to beg for a living and being sold off in a marriage so I can be "one less mouth to feed" and a meal ticket for a greedy father. So many Americans are taking the luxuries they have for granted. For many children, "school" is a place they'll never see, but here in America, parents are required to send their kids to school or they'll be jailed, and child marriage is punishable by the law.

Overall, great book. I'm so happy Nujood got her justice and is following her dreams, and I hope that one day, life will change for those who live in Yemen and surrounding regions.