What do you think?
Rate this book
A Woman is a School
A Woman is a School is the first memoir and cultural anthropological book by Slow Factory founder, Céline Semaan. As a war-survivor and child refugee sharing endangered and discredited ancestral knowledge of the Global South, particularly tales from Lebanon from 1948 to 2023-the book follows the tradition of the hakawati, the storytellers of the Levant. Holding Indigenous knowledge and wisdom, Céline Semaan, a hakawati herself, documents what she has witnessed throughout her life and the lives of her family members, sharing her upbringing and cultures of resistance.
260 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 9, 2024
80 people are currently reading
1806 people want to read
About the author
Céline Semaan
5 books24 followersCéline Semaan-Vernon is a Lebanese-Canadian artist, designer, writer, and advocate.
Her book A Woman Is A School (2024) is on traditional ecological knowledge in the Global South.
She is the founder of Slow Factory Foundation, a 501c3 public service organization. She is on the council of Progressive International, became a Director's Fellow of MIT Media Lab in 2016, and served on the board of directors of American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) NY, a nonprofit design organization
Her book A Woman Is A School (2024) is on traditional ecological knowledge in the Global South.
She is the founder of Slow Factory Foundation, a 501c3 public service organization. She is on the council of Progressive International, became a Director's Fellow of MIT Media Lab in 2016, and served on the board of directors of American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) NY, a nonprofit design organization
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
February 2, 2025
I started reading this book as I came across it through my casual familiarity with the Slow Factory's posts on Instagram, and I liked the premise of women bearing inherent educational value "a woman is a school".
Honestly, I feel quite guilty for not liking it. The author's point of view about the world, her values and her politics, all align directly with my own. So here is a woman whose life work is to decolonise our world and to make it more sustainable and earth-loving. We are allies, so I want nothing more than for her and us all to prosper in these pursuits. I wish her the best and if her book brings us more allies, great!
There are some very quotable sentences, and the whole thing is written elegantly with great grammar and strong conviction, and I emphasise again that I whole heartedly agree with the values and opinions of the author, even if they did remain a bit too general and got a bit too repetitive.
My main critique is that this book has one mood: self-righteous indignation. The majority of this book is spent bitterly criticising Western cultures and violence and modernity, and romanticising indigenous, colonised cultures and wisdom. For a book that so strongly advocates for "radical imagination" beyond our existing world, she spends an awfully large chunk of word count (easily more than 50%) explaining our existing world to the reader, in a not particularly original way.
The memoir is sad, but after a certain point it begins to sound like the author is reveling in her own grief and status as a child of war. I kind of wish she had healed more before embarking on this writing project, or used the writing project to heal more before publishing it. I can't tell if it's the authors intention or if it's the editor who is to blame, but it sounds like she is bragging about her misfortune and victimhood. As someone with a not dissimilar story to hers, it felt like a weird positionality.
Regarding the title, it is poorly chosen. This book is not a collection of women's wisdom, in fact the people in her life who she speaks of fondly and shares inspirational stories about are mostly her grandfather and also her dad and maybe even her husband. Women in her culture are critiqued for their internalised misogyny (though not without painfully long caveats blaming colonialism and patriarchy) and her issues with her mum sound unresolved. Made me kind of sad for her and her mum to be honest (which I don't think is her intention).
This is supposed to be a memoir, but we get no specific details on her introspective journey of self reflection, no real vulnerability, no moments that she takes responsibility for. We get the odd generic admittance of having made mistakes but even so, we always default back to bitterness at western values. This becomes tiring to read, even if I agree that western individualism and colonialism are so so bad!
And to be clear, it's totally OK to write a polemic manifesto. I read Abdullah Ocalan and Marx & Englels and those are books I loved reading because the anger in the words were building to something important! To act! To revolt!
But the author is clearly going for something else here. It seems she is writing more of a career memoir about her path to creating the Slow Factory. This would have been a really interesting concept and I would've loved to hear more about how she got here! But unfortunately we are given only vague facts about that. We are offered nothing practical about "how to" take a similar path or be an activist. Slow factory is often referenced but barely explained. It's almost always included as defensiveness against someone who thought she couldn't succeed or to create a broader narrative arch about her ancestors or colonialism. It just gets a bit tiring. What does Slow Factory specifically do, beyond working in (broadly) fashion and waste? We never find out.
I think the righteousness of the tone really brings this book down for me, and I wish someone in the edit to publish pipeline had encouraged a bit more humour, honesty, joy or self reflection, to break up the monotony of all the twitter chat.
Another reviewer suggested that this might be good for someone who is new to thinking about themselves as a victim of colonial patriarchal capitalism, who is still looking for language to validate them. That's a great point. I might recommend this to someone who has read captions and tweets that resonate online, and is looking for something in longer form about the interconnectedness of these issues.
Honestly, I feel quite guilty for not liking it. The author's point of view about the world, her values and her politics, all align directly with my own. So here is a woman whose life work is to decolonise our world and to make it more sustainable and earth-loving. We are allies, so I want nothing more than for her and us all to prosper in these pursuits. I wish her the best and if her book brings us more allies, great!
There are some very quotable sentences, and the whole thing is written elegantly with great grammar and strong conviction, and I emphasise again that I whole heartedly agree with the values and opinions of the author, even if they did remain a bit too general and got a bit too repetitive.
My main critique is that this book has one mood: self-righteous indignation. The majority of this book is spent bitterly criticising Western cultures and violence and modernity, and romanticising indigenous, colonised cultures and wisdom. For a book that so strongly advocates for "radical imagination" beyond our existing world, she spends an awfully large chunk of word count (easily more than 50%) explaining our existing world to the reader, in a not particularly original way.
The memoir is sad, but after a certain point it begins to sound like the author is reveling in her own grief and status as a child of war. I kind of wish she had healed more before embarking on this writing project, or used the writing project to heal more before publishing it. I can't tell if it's the authors intention or if it's the editor who is to blame, but it sounds like she is bragging about her misfortune and victimhood. As someone with a not dissimilar story to hers, it felt like a weird positionality.
Regarding the title, it is poorly chosen. This book is not a collection of women's wisdom, in fact the people in her life who she speaks of fondly and shares inspirational stories about are mostly her grandfather and also her dad and maybe even her husband. Women in her culture are critiqued for their internalised misogyny (though not without painfully long caveats blaming colonialism and patriarchy) and her issues with her mum sound unresolved. Made me kind of sad for her and her mum to be honest (which I don't think is her intention).
This is supposed to be a memoir, but we get no specific details on her introspective journey of self reflection, no real vulnerability, no moments that she takes responsibility for. We get the odd generic admittance of having made mistakes but even so, we always default back to bitterness at western values. This becomes tiring to read, even if I agree that western individualism and colonialism are so so bad!
And to be clear, it's totally OK to write a polemic manifesto. I read Abdullah Ocalan and Marx & Englels and those are books I loved reading because the anger in the words were building to something important! To act! To revolt!
But the author is clearly going for something else here. It seems she is writing more of a career memoir about her path to creating the Slow Factory. This would have been a really interesting concept and I would've loved to hear more about how she got here! But unfortunately we are given only vague facts about that. We are offered nothing practical about "how to" take a similar path or be an activist. Slow factory is often referenced but barely explained. It's almost always included as defensiveness against someone who thought she couldn't succeed or to create a broader narrative arch about her ancestors or colonialism. It just gets a bit tiring. What does Slow Factory specifically do, beyond working in (broadly) fashion and waste? We never find out.
I think the righteousness of the tone really brings this book down for me, and I wish someone in the edit to publish pipeline had encouraged a bit more humour, honesty, joy or self reflection, to break up the monotony of all the twitter chat.
Another reviewer suggested that this might be good for someone who is new to thinking about themselves as a victim of colonial patriarchal capitalism, who is still looking for language to validate them. That's a great point. I might recommend this to someone who has read captions and tweets that resonate online, and is looking for something in longer form about the interconnectedness of these issues.
September 19, 2024
this book is genuinely so so so beautiful. i admire celine so much. she is doing amazing work with slow factory and with this book. just highly recommend for everyone, but especially those in the activist field
October 28, 2024
All humans should read this.
December 26, 2024
one of those few books i will keep returning to – for comfort and guidance
March 16, 2025
just divine! Céline Semaan is the ultimate inspiration for forging creative and radical paths forward towards collective healing and, ultimately, liberation. what a privilege it is to get to learn about the women who shaped her spirit!
“The sacred rebellion always brewing in my spirit is there to keep me in love with life…sacred rebellion is in fact a divine gift, for it is grounded in infinite love. It is respectful irreverence; it is the ability and will to demonstrate courage in the face of…anyone whose motive it is to oppress or deny your humanity. It is the attitude through which joyful defiance is enacted and through which change is made. It is the truest expression of the creative spirit, the spirit we are all made of and have the right to express.
There is a sacred rebellion that lives inside the bodies of women in my family who have taught me everything I know. The rebellion is brewing and active and has a song of its own. It marches to the beat of the blood pumping through the veins, rising with every breath…When the breath turns into a scream, the sacred rebellion is armed and ready for the revolution. A revolution that begins in every cell of the body, transpiring into sweat, moving women into manifesting their will into the physical world.”
“The sacred rebellion always brewing in my spirit is there to keep me in love with life…sacred rebellion is in fact a divine gift, for it is grounded in infinite love. It is respectful irreverence; it is the ability and will to demonstrate courage in the face of…anyone whose motive it is to oppress or deny your humanity. It is the attitude through which joyful defiance is enacted and through which change is made. It is the truest expression of the creative spirit, the spirit we are all made of and have the right to express.
There is a sacred rebellion that lives inside the bodies of women in my family who have taught me everything I know. The rebellion is brewing and active and has a song of its own. It marches to the beat of the blood pumping through the veins, rising with every breath…When the breath turns into a scream, the sacred rebellion is armed and ready for the revolution. A revolution that begins in every cell of the body, transpiring into sweat, moving women into manifesting their will into the physical world.”
November 6, 2025
not only for the sole reason of her philosophies and beliefs align with mine very much but, i felt i was reading about my life from hers. the stories she told about her family and the observations of the small details about communication among her people were/are in my life as well. the act of generosity with reciprocity, the importance of having a impeccably clean home, and needing to have the best style at all times are very much in part of my iraqi upbringing and ideals still being shared today, but all in small small ways that you have to really look to see it. which is why i love that she decided to write all that she saw into words to share with all of us. so so so nice but heartbreaking to read. thank you céline
December 26, 2025
More of a slow burn for me. I had the chance to meet Celine in a public reading as a part of this book tour and been excited to read it since.
The first few chapters couldnt escape the common instagram language for me and I felt rather understimulated by the depths she was exploring around colonial influence and liberation from it.
However the chapters around generosity, imagination and creativity were quite inspiring. Every time we forgive ourselves over a mistake and fail and try again and again, we’re actually doing something very anti-colonial. Linear lines that thrive on individual success are colonial artifacts. Linearity is a colonial fever dream.
Originally a 3.5, rounded up to 4 cause im in a good mood!
The first few chapters couldnt escape the common instagram language for me and I felt rather understimulated by the depths she was exploring around colonial influence and liberation from it.
However the chapters around generosity, imagination and creativity were quite inspiring. Every time we forgive ourselves over a mistake and fail and try again and again, we’re actually doing something very anti-colonial. Linear lines that thrive on individual success are colonial artifacts. Linearity is a colonial fever dream.
Originally a 3.5, rounded up to 4 cause im in a good mood!
July 6, 2025
A love letter to Lebanon and the Global South that challenges Western ideals and in its place paints a rich picture of love, community, generational trauma,
resistance, and action.
resistance, and action.
December 16, 2024
Must-read for everyone.
This book is a much-needed pov, esp to us ethnocentrized and colonized in the west.
I immensely appreciated Céline’s synthesis on the intersection of Lebanese fashion, from her lived experience straddling two cultures as a teen, politics, class, religion, the feminine identity, and consequences of global colonialism; her young mother’s battle with assimilation in Canada, her own revolutionary acts of native and individualism embodiment.
As well, the persistent, cohesive mentions of the pervasiveness of the fast fashion problem when considering climate and carbon impacts and then full circling back, the suffocating and occupying political systems therein relies and operates.
Especially with eyes currently on the genocide in Occupied Palestine and the broader vulnerable populations of the Levant, my compassion and curiosity continue to reach for books and resources that source real stories and material to learn from the people of SWARNA like Céline.
As someone who did not grow up in a stitched and stayed together family of broad social acceptance of “others”, or with a strong radically generous familial presence or spirituality like Céline’s, or as rich emotionally, generationally, in tradition and community; I’m paying attention and grateful for the lessons being shared and carried forward from people who’s culture-rich radical generosity has been forged from the sacrifice of their own blood, land, and of their own basic human rights and resource violations. This radical attitude of abundance of shared knowledge to liberate us all, born of, or in radically hopeful retaliation of, their own oppression.
Appreciative of all continuing education offerings and future publications from the Slow Factory and the amplification of these narratives, conclusions, and theories and specific proposals on how and where to interpersonally activate and begin healing our collective from this specific, valuable, geopolitical perspective.
This book is a much-needed pov, esp to us ethnocentrized and colonized in the west.
I immensely appreciated Céline’s synthesis on the intersection of Lebanese fashion, from her lived experience straddling two cultures as a teen, politics, class, religion, the feminine identity, and consequences of global colonialism; her young mother’s battle with assimilation in Canada, her own revolutionary acts of native and individualism embodiment.
As well, the persistent, cohesive mentions of the pervasiveness of the fast fashion problem when considering climate and carbon impacts and then full circling back, the suffocating and occupying political systems therein relies and operates.
Especially with eyes currently on the genocide in Occupied Palestine and the broader vulnerable populations of the Levant, my compassion and curiosity continue to reach for books and resources that source real stories and material to learn from the people of SWARNA like Céline.
As someone who did not grow up in a stitched and stayed together family of broad social acceptance of “others”, or with a strong radically generous familial presence or spirituality like Céline’s, or as rich emotionally, generationally, in tradition and community; I’m paying attention and grateful for the lessons being shared and carried forward from people who’s culture-rich radical generosity has been forged from the sacrifice of their own blood, land, and of their own basic human rights and resource violations. This radical attitude of abundance of shared knowledge to liberate us all, born of, or in radically hopeful retaliation of, their own oppression.
Appreciative of all continuing education offerings and future publications from the Slow Factory and the amplification of these narratives, conclusions, and theories and specific proposals on how and where to interpersonally activate and begin healing our collective from this specific, valuable, geopolitical perspective.
January 17, 2025
There are both amazing and redundant parts of the book, but it is absolutely a book worth reading. It reminds me a little of the autobiography of Assata Shakur—it’s not really a book that you come to for prose (even if there are absolutely beautiful parts). It’s raw. It’s a book you come to because of its power. It’s the story of her life living across countries and continents — in the diaspora and at home — and about her practice + view of the world. I particularly appreciate how she retells the rougher parts of her life, her upbringing, or interactions with other folks with love and care & without stripping away their dignity.
I’m giving it 3.5 stars because it’s my honest review, but I really don’t want this to deter anyone from reading it. I imagine a curious teenager who is reading a little more than other kids their age, who has yet to find words to name their frustrations, and is searching for inspiration on how to live with integrity will be deeeeeeply transformed by this biography. This is by no means a youth book, but it’s a great read for anyone who might be at the beginning of their unlearning journey. Also a great read for anyone who is just curious about the life of this trailblazer!
Grateful this book is out in the world. As Céline explained, it’s important for those working through the present to leave maps behind for future generations. Onwards.
I’m giving it 3.5 stars because it’s my honest review, but I really don’t want this to deter anyone from reading it. I imagine a curious teenager who is reading a little more than other kids their age, who has yet to find words to name their frustrations, and is searching for inspiration on how to live with integrity will be deeeeeeply transformed by this biography. This is by no means a youth book, but it’s a great read for anyone who might be at the beginning of their unlearning journey. Also a great read for anyone who is just curious about the life of this trailblazer!
Grateful this book is out in the world. As Céline explained, it’s important for those working through the present to leave maps behind for future generations. Onwards.
December 20, 2024
Unlike any book I’ve read- the power of storytelling, radical imagination, collective liberation, and sharing the challenges of being raised in multiple cultures was healing.
From the start, you are positioned to see experiences as data and trusting your own (and other’s) stories as acts of resilience and seeking truths. The themes of the Global South and Global North’s differing values and colonialism’s manipulation of history, climate, agriculture, and art are highlighted by recounting both personal experiences and reviewing historical events.
I wholeheartedly recommend- especially if you are from the Middle Eastern diaspora.
From the start, you are positioned to see experiences as data and trusting your own (and other’s) stories as acts of resilience and seeking truths. The themes of the Global South and Global North’s differing values and colonialism’s manipulation of history, climate, agriculture, and art are highlighted by recounting both personal experiences and reviewing historical events.
I wholeheartedly recommend- especially if you are from the Middle Eastern diaspora.
Read
April 21, 2025undoubtedly an incredibly important story to tell, but this book needed to go through another round of major edits. some of the sentence structures in here were unreadable
February 13, 2025
She talks about the immigrant experience, particularly if you are from the global south and have experienced war first hand, and the resulting trauma really well. I am too much of a realist to consider myself a revolutionary but it is still interesting to hear her perspective on the path to collective liberation. So many sentences where I stopped and re read like 15 times because I was like damn… “nothing about war is objective” for one ! Just a really beautiful recitation of how war impacts generations to come and how the generations before ours don’t talk about the trauma as a coping mechanism. Really made me emotional thinking about my parents/grandparents/family and the wars they lived/continue to live through.
I do think her sentence structure will turn off a lot of people who aren’t as far left as she is (aka me) (used the word “radical” a lot when she was essentially just describing an ideal reality which I fear we will never live in but nonetheless admire her for trying to bring about). For example, she talks about money being a colonialist tool and I just can’t get behind that but I’m sure her intended audience can. The main message there was in times of war money becomes useless and that highlights how important caring for your community is - something I really enjoyed thinking about and would subscribe to! Why not phrase it that way! But why am I asking a literal war survivor to make her life story more palatable to me?? It’s because she has such good insights around compassion and care and generosity and I fear people who need to read this wont.
Also, it got repetitive near the end and timeline hard to keep up with. Lastly, she seems to have beef with khaleejis whether she wants to admit it or not but not really radical acceptance of you to paint Saudi in a bad light (regardless of how oppressive it was at the time) after you spent 50+ pages talking about how you pride yourself on understanding other peoples perspectives and cultures. Idk, could have been a way to explain the horrors her mom went through in Saudi without making it an “ideology” problem. Which seems to be what she wants to avoid. Im not the prime minister of Saudi so I shouldn’t really care I just can’t stand when people are hypocritical!!
To end on a good note, she really made me reassess my relationship with the West. Also I loveeee how she talks about why brown and Arab communities are so selfless and generous despite being dehumanized and ravaged for our resources for thousands of years. War makes resilient people!!! “All would disappear. And what’s left of you when you lose everything? War made our spirits stronger”
I do think her sentence structure will turn off a lot of people who aren’t as far left as she is (aka me) (used the word “radical” a lot when she was essentially just describing an ideal reality which I fear we will never live in but nonetheless admire her for trying to bring about). For example, she talks about money being a colonialist tool and I just can’t get behind that but I’m sure her intended audience can. The main message there was in times of war money becomes useless and that highlights how important caring for your community is - something I really enjoyed thinking about and would subscribe to! Why not phrase it that way! But why am I asking a literal war survivor to make her life story more palatable to me?? It’s because she has such good insights around compassion and care and generosity and I fear people who need to read this wont.
Also, it got repetitive near the end and timeline hard to keep up with. Lastly, she seems to have beef with khaleejis whether she wants to admit it or not but not really radical acceptance of you to paint Saudi in a bad light (regardless of how oppressive it was at the time) after you spent 50+ pages talking about how you pride yourself on understanding other peoples perspectives and cultures. Idk, could have been a way to explain the horrors her mom went through in Saudi without making it an “ideology” problem. Which seems to be what she wants to avoid. Im not the prime minister of Saudi so I shouldn’t really care I just can’t stand when people are hypocritical!!
To end on a good note, she really made me reassess my relationship with the West. Also I loveeee how she talks about why brown and Arab communities are so selfless and generous despite being dehumanized and ravaged for our resources for thousands of years. War makes resilient people!!! “All would disappear. And what’s left of you when you lose everything? War made our spirits stronger”
January 3, 2025
Absolutely loved reading Céline's memoir, as it reminded me of my own personal story and heritage as a North African woman living in North America.
"A Woman is a School" goes far beyond the traditional memoir and touches on deep topics and pressing issues that the Global Majority currently faces at the hands of colonialism, oppression, and apartheid. From climate justice and fashion to identity, the stories told are relatable to so many who come from or have strong ties to the Global South, with reflections focused on non-traditional paths to liberation, such as the power of radical generosity, community, and peaceful resistance.
While having lived most of her life in the Global North, Céline was able to stay in touch with and celebrate her roots, honouring her ancestors' legacy. I had the chance to meet her in Montréal during her book launch, and she is nothing short of a truly inspiring, kind, and powerful person. She is the embodiment of quiet power, and I feel lucky to have crossed paths with her.
"A Woman is a School" goes far beyond the traditional memoir and touches on deep topics and pressing issues that the Global Majority currently faces at the hands of colonialism, oppression, and apartheid. From climate justice and fashion to identity, the stories told are relatable to so many who come from or have strong ties to the Global South, with reflections focused on non-traditional paths to liberation, such as the power of radical generosity, community, and peaceful resistance.
While having lived most of her life in the Global North, Céline was able to stay in touch with and celebrate her roots, honouring her ancestors' legacy. I had the chance to meet her in Montréal during her book launch, and she is nothing short of a truly inspiring, kind, and powerful person. She is the embodiment of quiet power, and I feel lucky to have crossed paths with her.
January 3, 2025
“Either I marry Noor, or I will go to the convent.” سعاد, Céline’s grandmother
or
Everyone should read this book because what is life if not the feminine urge (threat) to join a convent at some point?
Céline generously takes us into stories from her life that have shaped her life and work. She has the ability to artistically convey information that is both devastating and inspiring. She is herself a school because her family, mentors, and loved ones have taught her how to imagine a world outside of the colonial one that we live in and she in turn is working towards making that a relatively. Her story is everywhere on the spectrum of love to despair, yet سيلين is hopeful for a radical future that we can imagine collectively.
In a capitalist world, existing as a woman means that you will be harmed. But women also have the power to heal and educate past and future generations. نحن جنسنا ضيان (We are built strong and made to last)
or
Everyone should read this book because what is life if not the feminine urge (threat) to join a convent at some point?
Céline generously takes us into stories from her life that have shaped her life and work. She has the ability to artistically convey information that is both devastating and inspiring. She is herself a school because her family, mentors, and loved ones have taught her how to imagine a world outside of the colonial one that we live in and she in turn is working towards making that a relatively. Her story is everywhere on the spectrum of love to despair, yet سيلين is hopeful for a radical future that we can imagine collectively.
In a capitalist world, existing as a woman means that you will be harmed. But women also have the power to heal and educate past and future generations. نحن جنسنا ضيان (We are built strong and made to last)
April 18, 2025
This memoir of Slow Factory founder Céline Semaan/collection of indigenous knowledge of people of the Levant/action work book incarnating an ‚Applied Utopia‘, really did something for me.
With her crisp yet hopeful storytelling, Céline successfully allowed us to dive into her world and that of her ancestors, heal together with her and dream of a world where community care and creativity and invention is prioritised and diversity embraced. Radical imagination and radical care. Light was shed on our current economic and political colonial structures and hierarchies between the Global North and South, oppressed cultures were celebrated and space for the new was created.
(A tiny critic is that some parts where a little repetitive as it seemed the different chapters were designed as separate articles and needed reminding/context)
With her crisp yet hopeful storytelling, Céline successfully allowed us to dive into her world and that of her ancestors, heal together with her and dream of a world where community care and creativity and invention is prioritised and diversity embraced. Radical imagination and radical care. Light was shed on our current economic and political colonial structures and hierarchies between the Global North and South, oppressed cultures were celebrated and space for the new was created.
(A tiny critic is that some parts where a little repetitive as it seemed the different chapters were designed as separate articles and needed reminding/context)
February 25, 2025
first thing is, i LOVE slow factory's contents. i like that instead of sharing the sufferings of oppressed people, they focus on the root causes (capitalism, imperialism, colonisation etc) and real solutions (liberation).
ive been looking for an essay collection thats both political and memoir thats not cringe or too personal. so theres just no reason for me to not giving this book five stars. its perfect, and yes its always perfect when your beliefs are paralleled to the author's. same page. it makes me believe that im on the right side.
ive been looking for an essay collection thats both political and memoir thats not cringe or too personal. so theres just no reason for me to not giving this book five stars. its perfect, and yes its always perfect when your beliefs are paralleled to the author's. same page. it makes me believe that im on the right side.
April 21, 2025
do not perceive this book as a memoir, but as if you’re reading your mother’s or big sister’s old diary for you to navigate through life and know your (family) history for a better vision on the futurr and your life.
also as a kid / gitl from a colonized country, Céline shouts to always have your pride, anger, independence, passion, justice and thirst to always learning more ❤️🔥
one of the words to live by from the book : « peace doesn’t mean justice, it means stability and control »
also as a kid / gitl from a colonized country, Céline shouts to always have your pride, anger, independence, passion, justice and thirst to always learning more ❤️🔥
one of the words to live by from the book : « peace doesn’t mean justice, it means stability and control »
May 6, 2025
4.5 stars. This is a brave, compassionate memoir. You feel love and togetherness pulsating through every page. I found some parts a bit redundant or generalizing in the beginning, but than again this is what storytelling is, right?
I am so thankful for this honest, broadening and warming reading experience.
I am so thankful for this honest, broadening and warming reading experience.
April 25, 2025
Céline is an amazing storyteller, I loved every bit of it. She tells a story that is so deep, so painful, adamantly rooted in faith and in touch with spirit on a visceral level. Thank you for the way you radically share this with us and thank you for Slow Factory.
November 5, 2025
expertly written. a woman is a school is a touching memoir filled with touching stories of célines past and a snippet into the history of lebanon. her writing is vivid and philosophical, with chapters paired with songs to bring her memories and thoughts to life
November 17, 2024
This is one everyone should read.
December 16, 2024
Wish I had liked it, but stopped reading 100 pages in. Enjoyed the stories of her life, disliked the great generalizations and the superficiality of the critique and analysis.
January 7, 2025
I enjoyed a lot of the stores but I think the author oversimplified pieces and repeated herself a lot
January 28, 2025
Brills. I joined Slow Factory as a member as I finished this book.
March 30, 2025
What a book, will read it over and over again. So rich! Highly recommended.
Read
April 27, 2025Really loved this book.
Semaan's writing is poetic, deeply moving, and challenging in the best way
Semaan's writing is poetic, deeply moving, and challenging in the best way
May 6, 2025
Brutal…!
5 stars plus..for a very personal life story.
A hard read to read.
Thank you Celine Semaan.
5 stars plus..for a very personal life story.
A hard read to read.
Thank you Celine Semaan.
May 20, 2025
Loved it. Such a clever memoir.
June 9, 2025
Mandatory reading for the global north.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews