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A review by kshertz
When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I friggin loved this book. It could be the time period. I love the idea of women becoming dragons spontaneously in 1955. It’s a result of anytime the woman is suppressed, or had their rights pushed away, or tried to be put in a box. There’s a few stories going on but the main is a family where the mom doesn’t spontaneously dragon but probably should have, and the aunt does. The young daughter is left to pick up the pieces and decide what she and her cousin (pretend now sister) will do. Her dad is trash. The other side is people trying to silence all the dragonings happening. There are fake centers for learning and congressional hearings. It’s just brilliant in my humble opinion. I only loved it more when I found out it was written and dedicated to Christine Blasey Ford and written after the Brett Kavanaugh hearing. I think if you’re currently enraged and feeling helpless, this book made me feel a little less alone.
Moderate: Biphobia, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail