Born a girl : it takes courage

Born a girl It takes courage

Alice Dussutour

Book - 2024

"When you're born a girl, some parts of the world are kinder places to grow up in than others. Meet Kaneila, Jade, Mahnoosh, Makena and Luisa. They are five girls in five different countries whose lives are overshadowed by violence and injustice, just because they are female. These girls navigate the challenges and horrors of period poverty, female genital mutilation, lack of access to education, body shaming and femicide. The stories are heartbreaking but also inspiring, as the girls are surrounded by people who bring hope and speak out for equality. Following each story is a section that explains the real-life circumstances for girls in many parts of the world, important terms, and what girls and women are doing to take action t...oday. For these girls, their individual experiences of being born a girl may be different, but their desire for freedom and equality is universal." --

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Subjects
Young women > Social conditions > Juvenile literature.
Girls > Social conditions > Juvenile literature.
Women > Social conditions > Juvenile literature.
Feminism > Juvenile literature.
Feminism.
Girls > Social conditions.
Women > Social conditions.
Young women > Social conditions.
YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION / Girls & Women.
Juvenile works.
Informational works.
Illustrated works.
Genres
YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION / Girls & Women
Juvenile works
Informational works
Illustrated works
Published
[Victoria, British Columbia] : Orca Book Publishers 2024.
Language
English
French
Main Author
Alice Dussutour (author, -)
Other Authors
David (Linguist) Warriner (translator)
Edition
English edition
Item Description
Original title: Naître fille.
Includes index.
Physical Description
156 pages : color illustrations, color maps ; 24 cm
ISBN
9781459838987
  • Kaneila
  • Every month Kaneila is banished to a hut for a week. She's isolated because having her period is thought to make her impure. When she learns how the menstrual cycle works, she starts to question what she's been led to believe. THEMES: PERIODS, TABOO, PERIOD POVERTY
  • Jade
  • Jade's body has curves, and that's never been a problem for her-until the day her mother puts her on a diet. To free herself from the obsession of achieving the perfect body, she decides to get creative. THEMES: BODY IMAGE. SOCIETAL PRESSURES, ANTI-FAT BIAS
  • Mahnoosh
  • Mahnoosh is the third oldest of a family of seven girls. She becomes a bacha posh and dresses like a boy so that she can work with her father. When she reaches adolescence, she has a choice to make. THEMES; PATRIARCHAL SOCIETY. EDUCATION, ACTIVISM
  • Makena
  • Makena's name means "one who brings happiness" in Swahili. She's devastated when she finds out that her best friend has been forced into marriage and her body has been mutilated. But then one of the elders in the village gives Makena an idea. THEMES: FORCED MARRIAGE, FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION (FGM), MATRIARCHAL SOCIETY
  • Luisa
  • Luisa loves her city and her neighborhood. But life is not exactly pleasant when men on the bus are touching her inappropriately and boys at school are belittling her. And then one day her sister goes missing. THEMES: FEMICIDE. HARASSMENT, UPRISING
Review by Booklist Review

This accessible offering comes with a bright, cheerful cover with vibrant, eye-catching illustrations of five young women representing various cultures. This engaging artwork belies the serious content of the book, a look at five contemporary misogynistic cultural practices intended to isolate, humiliate, and control women. Chapters begin with a first-person, graphic-novel-format introduction to a representative character invented by the author, in which a teen explains the realities of her life, followed by informative and straightforward commentary. Kaneila lives in Tibet and is banished to a shed in the forest every time she has her period. Mahnoosh lives in Afghanistan and is a bacha posh, a girl who must pose as a boy to defy the Taliban. Jade lives in France and is constantly shamed because others think she's too big; in Mexico City, strange men think nothing of groping Luisa on public transportation. Makena from Kenya learns genital mutilation is in her near future. The evenhanded content explains how each practice evolved and how it affects all women, as well as sharing both grassroots and international movements to ban these types of traditions. Each character does stand up for herself and finds support through other women. This informative and inspiring offering should help teens assert their rights as well.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 7--10--Translated from the original French, this work tells five stories of five girls in different parts of the world, where being born female can have serious consequences. Teens will read about domestic violence, menstrual discrimination, genital mutilation, and other triggering subjects. These topics, while uncomfortable, are necessary for today's youth to know of. The world is not an easy place for girls, and learning about cultures different from one's own can only further our understanding and empathy for our fellow humans. There are also pages of facts after each fictional story to help make the narrative better understandable. The bright illustrations and matter-of-fact language keep these tales in the realm of children's literature, even though the subject matter is very adult at times. Back matter includes information about activists and associations as well as books and films for those who want to learn more or get involved. VERDICT Difficult but necessary, this work is both triggering and empowering.--Jessica Durham

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review

In this translated import from France, profiles of five fictional girls describe struggles with societal norms and introduce critical gender-related issues. In a village in Nepal, menstrual taboos exile Kaneila to a distant, doorless hut during her period, leaving her vulnerable to wild animals and sexual assault and banning her from attending school. Even as she questions these superstitions, a biology student from a village that's discarded this custom comes to educate her class about female physiology, inspiring Kaneila to want to empower other girls. Dussutour then explains how "periods are political," describing initiatives and challenges worldwide. In France, Jade is fat-shamed by her mother, doctor, classmates, and strangers. She's humiliated and confused by media messages, but support from her sister and a friend who's experienced racism help her focus on her body's strength and share her feelings with her family. The author covers body positivity, the negative toll of diet culture, the prevalence of eating disorders, and related topics. Other chapters talk about Afghanistan (Mahnoosh dresses as a boy so she can have freedom of movement), Kenya (Makena flees female genital mutilation to live in a matriarchal community with her sister), and Mexico (Luisa copes with sexual harassment in public and at school, and her sister becomes a victim of domestic violence). Saturated, vibrantly colored illustrations highlight the girls and symbolic items in their lives. The book celebrates those who are working for change from within their cultures. Celebrates girls' resilience, courage, and initiative. (resources, index) (Nonfiction. 12-16) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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