A review by whatcourtneyreads
Girl by Edna O'Brien
4.0
⚠️CW: significant physical and sexual violence (incl. children); war⚠️
Maryam, a young Nigerian girl, has just been abducted (along with all of her school friends) by the Boko Haram, a group of fundamentalist terrorists, who proceed to torture and rape them, and force them into marriage with adult men. This story is based on the experiences of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted in 2014.
This book was absolutely devastating. I felt physically unwell at a few points in the first little bit, the descriptions were so graphic. It was actually relentless at one point. The trauma that these girls endured is monstrous, and the resulting destruction of families is heartbreaking.
O’Brien’s writing was incredibly engaging, and it took about two pages for me to be fully invested in this story. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down and finished it within a day.
I did feel like the pacing across the narrative was a bit jarring. We are propelled forward so harshly into the trauma and violence in the first half, before the story changes completely in the second and momentum is lost. It diminished my experience a bit, however I still really enjoyed the book overall.
I was initially concerned that a white Irish woman wrote this, however I was glad to read that O’Brien did significant research before writing this book, and spoke extensively with people who have lived experience. If it can’t be Own Voices, I hope it’s at least an accurate and respectful portrayal.
Maryam, a young Nigerian girl, has just been abducted (along with all of her school friends) by the Boko Haram, a group of fundamentalist terrorists, who proceed to torture and rape them, and force them into marriage with adult men. This story is based on the experiences of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted in 2014.
This book was absolutely devastating. I felt physically unwell at a few points in the first little bit, the descriptions were so graphic. It was actually relentless at one point. The trauma that these girls endured is monstrous, and the resulting destruction of families is heartbreaking.
O’Brien’s writing was incredibly engaging, and it took about two pages for me to be fully invested in this story. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down and finished it within a day.
I did feel like the pacing across the narrative was a bit jarring. We are propelled forward so harshly into the trauma and violence in the first half, before the story changes completely in the second and momentum is lost. It diminished my experience a bit, however I still really enjoyed the book overall.
I was initially concerned that a white Irish woman wrote this, however I was glad to read that O’Brien did significant research before writing this book, and spoke extensively with people who have lived experience. If it can’t be Own Voices, I hope it’s at least an accurate and respectful portrayal.