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A review by lunabean
Watching Women & Girls by Danielle Pender
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Was so excited to read this one, AND BOY DID IT NOT DISAPPOINT😭 Shy of 5 stars I think because of the way short stories usually are - fleeting and brief. Even so, even though the stories seemed mundane on the surface describing the ordinary lives of the average woman, each one (every single one!!) was so SUBLIME, so subtly powerful, I was always left having to pause after each story to sigh!!! 😮💨😮💨
From the title I’d expected stories of women and girls being watched from the eyes of men: being ogled at, not taken seriously, discriminated against. But what was intriguing was that these stories are also about how women look at each other, and at ourselves. There is a story of a mother at playgroup who feels out of place with the other white mothers; a story of a woman with OCD who navigates her daily routines whilst working at a cinema; a story of 3 sisters; of a woman who lost her best friend when she was a teenager; of a woman who has affairs. This collection explores female relationships, friendships, desire, grief, together with the intersectionality of race and class, using unadorned and lucid prose that is easy to understand. It is truly an ode to girlhood, womanhood, the many intricacies of being a girl and a woman in this world! 🥹
From the title I’d expected stories of women and girls being watched from the eyes of men: being ogled at, not taken seriously, discriminated against. But what was intriguing was that these stories are also about how women look at each other, and at ourselves. There is a story of a mother at playgroup who feels out of place with the other white mothers; a story of a woman with OCD who navigates her daily routines whilst working at a cinema; a story of 3 sisters; of a woman who lost her best friend when she was a teenager; of a woman who has affairs. This collection explores female relationships, friendships, desire, grief, together with the intersectionality of race and class, using unadorned and lucid prose that is easy to understand. It is truly an ode to girlhood, womanhood, the many intricacies of being a girl and a woman in this world! 🥹