Scan barcode
A review by jonnaandherwails
The Girl Who Stole an Elephant by Nizrana Farook
2.0
NOTE: Thanks to Nosy Crow and the author for providing me a copy via Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review! Any quote used in this review is taken from the provided copy, and the final print of the book may differ. Also, please know that this post may contain affiliate links for Amazon.
The premise? Promising. The book cover? Brilliant. Unfortunately, even an amazing book cover cannot cover the fact that the main character is a privileged and mean kid.
The synopsis describes Chaya as "a no-nonsense, outspoken hero," but that doesn't give her an excuse to stomp on her friends—Neel and Nour. Chaya makes fun of Nour for not knowing nor recognizing that she is privileged than most. Although she does try to defend Neel when Nour—unaware of Neel's background—starts talking about her privileged life, Chaya does this by talking over Neel. Also, this wasn't the only time that she talks over Neel. She knows that she's better off than Neel, but she acts like he needs her to be his voice. That's already a red flag for me. Neel has his own voice, and if you would just shut up and listen, you'd hear him. It's 2020/21, we're no longer trying to be the voice of marginalized people. What we should be doing is amplifying their voices. Avoid QRT-ing; simply RT.
Don't get me wrong. I love a strong, female character; however, I don't love an arrogant, privileged character acting like she's not as privileged in compared to other people—which is also true, but still! Chaya gives off this impression that she's aware of her own privilege and the huge gap of social inequality around them which is why she wants to help the other marginalized people. What she's unaware of though is the fact that her being able to steal and not receive any consequence from it is a privilege in itself. Sure, Chaya is also a member of the marginalized community, but in terms of status, she is still more privileged than the rest of them. I feel like we should widen the privilege narrative and start including the fact that it has various forms.
Farook's writing is perfect for young readers though. It's easy to grasp and includes enough details to provide an immersive experience. The context between the queen and king was initially confusing because Chaya continually repeats that she stole from the queen (and even goes as far as correcting Neel a few times whenever he says "king" instead of "queen"), but about 50% into the book, it chooses to stick with king and only mentions the queen again after several chapters.
While I appreciate how the story ended, I did not appreciate Chaya's character arc and the very little consequences she received from all the actions that she chose to do. All throughout the book, I tried to think if this is the kind of book that I would like young readers to have, and my definitive answer is no. Despite its inclusivity points, The Girl Who Stole an Elephant is unable to properly add into the privilege and social awareness narrative as it may have hoped to do.
FOLLOW ME FOR MORE WAILS: Instagram | Twitter | Goodreads | WordPress
The premise? Promising. The book cover? Brilliant. Unfortunately, even an amazing book cover cannot cover the fact that the main character is a privileged and mean kid.
The synopsis describes Chaya as "a no-nonsense, outspoken hero," but that doesn't give her an excuse to stomp on her friends—Neel and Nour. Chaya makes fun of Nour for not knowing nor recognizing that she is privileged than most. Although she does try to defend Neel when Nour—unaware of Neel's background—starts talking about her privileged life, Chaya does this by talking over Neel. Also, this wasn't the only time that she talks over Neel. She knows that she's better off than Neel, but she acts like he needs her to be his voice. That's already a red flag for me. Neel has his own voice, and if you would just shut up and listen, you'd hear him. It's 2020/21, we're no longer trying to be the voice of marginalized people. What we should be doing is amplifying their voices. Avoid QRT-ing; simply RT.
Don't get me wrong. I love a strong, female character; however, I don't love an arrogant, privileged character acting like she's not as privileged in compared to other people—which is also true, but still! Chaya gives off this impression that she's aware of her own privilege and the huge gap of social inequality around them which is why she wants to help the other marginalized people. What she's unaware of though is the fact that her being able to steal and not receive any consequence from it is a privilege in itself. Sure, Chaya is also a member of the marginalized community, but in terms of status, she is still more privileged than the rest of them. I feel like we should widen the privilege narrative and start including the fact that it has various forms.
Farook's writing is perfect for young readers though. It's easy to grasp and includes enough details to provide an immersive experience. The context between the queen and king was initially confusing because Chaya continually repeats that she stole from the queen (and even goes as far as correcting Neel a few times whenever he says "king" instead of "queen"), but about 50% into the book, it chooses to stick with king and only mentions the queen again after several chapters.
While I appreciate how the story ended, I did not appreciate Chaya's character arc and the very little consequences she received from all the actions that she chose to do. All throughout the book, I tried to think if this is the kind of book that I would like young readers to have, and my definitive answer is no. Despite its inclusivity points, The Girl Who Stole an Elephant is unable to properly add into the privilege and social awareness narrative as it may have hoped to do.
FOLLOW ME FOR MORE WAILS: Instagram | Twitter | Goodreads | WordPress