[Book Review] Dear Girl

 

Dear Girl

by Aija Mayrock

Poetry, Audiobook, Non-fiction,

Feminism


Links:

Goodreads / Amazon

I received an audiobook copy of this poetry book in exchange for an honest review.

This book packs a punch, and I mean that figuratively. Don't let the seemingly harmless cover fool you. This book is for the daughters, the mothers, and the sisters who face different challenges everyday on account of being born a woman.

It's beguiling, relatable, and touching, yet also empowering and inciting.

Another disclaimer, this is the first time I've ever tried listening to, and reviewing an audiobook, which is an altogether different experience than when I'm reading words. It's like listening to another person speak, especially since this is a collection of feminist poetry pieces, so the experience was surreal. It was like listening to a motivational speaker talking directly to me to raise my flag as a woman and take revenge on those who have wronged me by refusing to dull my shine and reaching for all that I've ever wanted to achieve.

What I liked about this book is that it doesn't only speak powerful and inspiring words, it also tackles different issues relative to being a woman, like sexual harassment, rape, racism, pregnancy, motherhood, or growing up in a predominantly patriarchal society. I guess it's also a plus that it was the author, Aija Mayrock, who did the narration for the audiobook. With free-verse emotive pieces like the poems in the book, I believe that it is necessary for the narrator to fully understand the depth of the material in order to properly convey it in spoken prose. So for this aspect, I think author and narrator Aija Mayrock did a solid job.

The only downside I found is that the tone for every piece almost sounded the same, so after a couple of minutes into the book, it felt repetitive and monotonous. Aside from the tone, a couple of pieces also sounded almost alike, especially at the end where there were several which spoke of burning, fire and flames. 

All in all though, I enjoyed this audiobook and would probably dig it out when I'm in a rut, or when I need motivation to accomplish all the things that I want to achieve.