This was a hard read for me. Not because it was difficult to read – I could hardly keep it down. But because of the contents of the book. The abuse, the patriarchal thoughts that keep a woman down. I just couldn’t deal with it. There are so many that go through this still and knowing that, I was angry.
The book tells the story of Isra, a girl from Palestine who is forced to marry a guy in America. She dreams of a better life than the one she lives and that she sees her mother live, but alas that doesn’t come true. Geographies may have changed but the society remained the same. Fast forward 18 years, her eldest daughter Deya is also facing the same situation where her grandmother wants her to marry but Deya wants to go to college.
I thought that the book would just be about their suffering but it was more. There was a mystery in this as well – what happened to Isra and her husband? Why did they die? In the end as I came to understand why, my stomach churned. Not that it wasn’t churning before.
I appreciated the writing – it was breezy and yet told such a deeply uncomfortable story. Having lived in Indonesia, a predominately Muslim country, I understand that talking about issues such as these are difficult and for that, this book is nothing but brave. 4.5 stars in my eyes y’all.
Have you read this book? What were your thoughts?
Sant Reads 