Born a Girl: It Takes Courage

by Alice Dussutour, David Warriner (Translator)

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 today. For these girls, their individual experiences of being born a girl may be different, but their desire for freedom and equality is universal.

Genres: Nonfiction, Teen, Graphic Novels

176 pages, Hardcover

First published March 12, 2024

Reviews

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the power of these five stories of girls around the world and the bold illustration style. And I appreciated the list of resources at the end.
But why, oh why, didn’t the author reference where she got the statistics she included?
Her acknowledgements mention how much she appreciates all of the girls who participated in her survey, and more information about that would have made this so much stronger.
These stories provide an important window (or mirror) into the ways that girls are still subjected to extreme efforts at control. But the lack of sources keeps me from rating the book more highly.

[Tessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are these stories about real women? This booking is uplifting and shows how so many women are fighting against the boxes people are putting them in.

[August Schiess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and heartbreaking stories. Thoughtful summaries of hard subjects, and great illustrations.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect quick read to give information and optimism about the state of women in the world today.

[Theediscerning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practically a graphic novel, this is a very welcome look at five different young women, from around the world, and the problems their gender throws their way. Our Nepalese heroine that we start with lives in a community that ostracises people with a period, so for one week in four she has to walk a mile from the village, sleep in a doorless hut on stilts, use a much-removed well for water, rely on charity and risk the venom of the gods if she sullies a book in that time by even touching it. Then, Jade in France gets fat-shamed, and suffers with her health and mood because of pressure to abandon who she is and lose weight. Afghanistan's millennium-old idea of the "bacha posh" is next – the character that is a daughter when a son was wanted, and who has to dress and present as a boy for the freedom it grants her, until that is biologically just not going to happen, and she has to revert to the hidden, rights-less entity of a female under the Taliban.

In Kenya, FGM and a generally miserable lot have forced young women and widows alike to flee and find a community of their own. And in Mexico City we follow Luisa, a girl tormented by gropers, catcalling and potentially much worse, for obvious reasons. After each visual essay, we get a much more prose-based chunk of material, related to the individual stories. So the first covers everything from 'what is a taboo' to 'period poverty' and all spaces in between, the 'fat' chapter gets round to defining the Bechdel Test, and so on.

All this seems expertly put together, although I didn't appreciate the font jumping in and out of cursive for no reason. The life studies have the sense of authenticity through every beat, and the pages afterwards don't shy away from discussing why FGM ever was a thing, but don't lead to too much pessimism. Yes there is a big step from the quickly-read, personalised graphic pages to the more dense and authoritative informative ones, but that is not that great a problem, and the fact this is all generally very immediate is only a good thing.

The book is quick to say that a lot of men have caused a lot of these problems, and no it doesn't really offer any one-stop solutions that will make this redundant. It certainly backs all the ideas women have for getting the world changed, of course – and obviously the first change is to invite all males to see these pages. If they pretend to want to be with a woman, if they want to understand a woman, and unless they want to dismiss the woman that gave birth to them, they certainly should take this all on board. And the female readers will be thoroughly empowered, too. As close to five stars as makes no difference.

[Gabrielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually really enjoyed this title. Various topics were discussed throughout the book. I see why this book may be problematic for many because of the discussions of femicide, genital mutilation, and abortion. I personally would get this book for my personal library for my child to read. I think everyone should read this title - especially someone who lives in the United States, to get an idea of what it's like to be a woman in another country - how certain beliefs and ideologies believe that girls are not valued or seen the same way as boys (it's like that still in the USA, but to read about period poverty, child marriages, genital mutilation, and femicide happening in other parts of the world, it gave me the opportunity to reflect and to really think about what privileges I have as a woman today because of economic growth, because I have a college education, because I married the man I loved, and not forced to marry. I have choices and opinions - while so many women do not. I am able to own my home, have credit cards in my name, drive my own car, say whatever I want to say in the spaces I take space in. I highly recommend every public library have this title available in their collection. School LMSs - review school policies, read title and decide if you can/want this title in your collection.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

An incredibly impactful read, it tells such incredibly important stories about what girls and women face around the world. While heartbreaking at times, it remains incredibly hopeful in its stories of bravery, activism, and survival. The art was stunning and despite being about heavy topics, beautifully illustrated, but still honest. The stories included showcase a diverse range of issues and ones that girls can relate to or understand, even if not a part of that culture. This book is valuable because it showcases voices and stories rarely shown to teens and young adults. I particularly appreciated that there is more formal informative pieces at the end of each girl’s story that gives context to what the narrator faced in her life. I think this is a book that truly depicts the idea that “girls come of age against the knife” and seeks to empower the reader to use their voice and to not be ashamed to use it loudly - especially in defense of oneself or others. This affected me now and I knew about what this book was depicting, so it would have deeply affected me as a teen when I was less aware of global issues, and angered me - as it should. You should leave this book a little angry, but also very proud of the women and girls fighting back against oppression and stigma.

[Wina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Non-fiction for ages 12-17. This was very cool. Even though it's for teens, it is highly illustrated and has larger text with lots of white space. There are a few anatomical illustrations and maps, but mostly just pictures of what's happening. I really liked the colorful style, too. This book is very frank, inclusive, and covers important issues facing women and girls around the world. If you could get boys to read it, too, that would be great. She does mention boys and men, and that they should know this, too. It's not addressed TO girls, specifically. Contains illustrations of garments and hygiene products stained with menstrual blood, and female anatomy. Some harsh subjects include femicide and female genital mutilation. The overall message is how to make change, progress that has been made, and the power of working together.

[Sabu Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

This beautifully illustrated book tells the stories of young girls from around the world, shedding light on critical issues such as fat shaming, genital mutilation, period poverty, lack of access to education, and femicide. With its powerful and timely message, it makes an ideal gift for your daughters.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. I think the information is solid, but the format is tricky. Each girl's story is written in simpler terms, with vivid drawings, followed by more traditional factual text. I felt like the presentation of the stories made the book look younger than high school, but the content is definitely high school. I'm not planning on purchasing this one.

[Israa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Edelweiss for an advanced copy. This is inspiring and sometimes saddening. There is multicultural representation. I wasn’t fond of some of the illustrations. I would recommend this for girls finding their way, but not necessarily for a library shelf.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

This illustrated journey introduces girls from around the world, telling of the particular hardships they face from having been born girls. It may well be an important eye-opener for many young teens.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amo le donne e amo essere una donna, non mi stancherò mai di dirlo.

Una guida molto carina ed efficace per le ragazzine in età da scuola media.
I disegni sono stupendi! E a tratti mi ha commosso davvero tanto.

[Hermusings · Rating 5 out of 5]

They truly never want to let the girly pops live 😭
This should be mandatory reading — informative, concise and real.
Also beautifully illustrated

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Global women’s issues for young people. Jumping off point for further research.