Getting it's own post because!!!!!!!!!!

A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Gave myself a day to churn this one around a bit and I still am not over it and won't be for quite a long time really.

I'm glad I read the stuff after the ending with the interview with the Author as she explained a few things I had wondered about as well. It was in a sense autobiographical for her although it was fiction.

She also mentioned how there aren't any books out there written by Arab women, besides hers. This would be my first experience reading a book by a person of Arab origins and I'm glad it was a woman author. Also breaking the silence was really difficult for her and she had to look to the strengths of Maya Angelou, Malala and Audre Lorde to help her release this book, so glad she did I think I may add this to my books that changed my life shelf too!

While I have studied Middle Eastern History, I have never however taken a close look at their culture, and never knew what the women went through! I knew barely about having to cover themselves and only close family could see them without the hijab. That was like the very small tip of the very large iceberg? Getting married as a teenager? Having babies while still being a child? Taking care of those children and doing everything around the house to please your husband. I sat there reading this wanting to cry and throw things for her. I would never ever be able to stand a life like that, it's set society back so far! Also the men would come home and beat their wives if things were not the way they wanted? Or this case in particular he beat her every day for having female children like she has any control over the gender of her babies?!

This book gave me a real eye opening experience. If I were a Palestinian woman, I more than likely would have been beaten to death as well no way in hell I would have sat there and taken it culture or no. OR I might have tried to take the Deya approach and get them to let me go to college. Then consider marriage later...

Gosh this book! I just. Meanwhile, I read it on my kindle, mostly in the tub, it was supposed to be my joyous read while reading my other oddly shaped book at nighttime in bed... SO MUCH FOR THAT. I found myself staying in the tub well past my time though having to see what happened next. And the tenses drove me insane! Switching from present back to 1997 and even further or in Brooklyn no wait now we're in Palestine. I paid attention but then I was all WHO IS DEYA GOING TO MEET I wanted to skip ahead and see but with a kindle you really cannot do that easily!

No wait there's more! I bet I will edit this review a couple times over.
I love that Isra finds her escape from her life in the books that Sarah brings her. Yeah let me just throw random characters at you with no context. Then also uses those books to bring happiness to her daughters when she can. Then Sarah makes books her life in owning the book store. Whose name is also the Author's instagram account that I have since followed and is really fun!

So good. This book was so so so good.

Going to have a tough time, finding one to beat it for my favorite of the year- and it's still January ye Gods.



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