“Silence does not mean yes. No can be thought and felt but never said. It can be screamed silently on the inside. It can be in the wordless stone of a clenched fist, fingernails digging into palm. Her lips sealed. Her eyes closed. His body just taking, never asking, never taught to question silence”
C/W: Rape, Rape Culture, Mental Health, Religion, Racism.
Hello, lovelies!
I only finished this book last night, but it's impacted me so heavily I need to get this review out now.
Everyone has to read this.
If you're looking for a serious, realistic insight of the hardships and ridiculousness of gossip and sexual expectation and how they can shape and destroy the life of teenagers, this book has it down perfectly. If you're looking for a book about teenage girls learning how to stand for their rights and take control of their own bodies, this book has it down. If you're looking for a book about feminism and it's importance in modern day high-school enviroments, this book has it down.
So what is The Nowhere Girls about?
Taking place in the town of Prescott, Oregon, this book centres around the teenage girls of Prescott High. The year prior to when the book is set, a young girl called Lucy Moynihan was raped at a party. After going to the police, Lucy was run out of town for accusing the "popular" boys at school for their crimes. The boys think they've gotten away with it without hassle. Until Grace moves into Lucy's old house, finds the words she scratched into the walls, and decides enough is enough. Pairing up with Erin, an autistic girl who is also a rape victim, and Rosina, a Mexican girl who fights for what she believes in so fiercly she's gotten into some crazy trouble at school, the three girls form "The Nowhere Girls", an anonymous group of girls who send out emails, host meetings, and are determined to change the way Prescott High, and the world, percieve teenage girls.
Eventually, The Nowhere Girls becomes a force bigger than the three girls who started it. Near enough every girl in the school is involved, and they've inforced a sex-strike. There is fourty-plus girls showing up to meetings. There is a sense of community and understanding that Prescott High has never felt before. There is a revolution.
Told from the multi-perspectives of Erin, Grace, Rosina, "Us", and occasionally, Lucy, or Amber - The Nowhere Girls is a tale of standing for your rights, self-discovery, and ultimately, loving your fellow woman.
What did I think of The Nowhere Girls?
Quite simply, I loved this book.
It made me angry. It made me cry. It made me feel so strongly for the girls of Prescott High that I couldn't breathe. I felt connected, like I was part of The Nowhere Girls.
But it also made me happy. It made me realise just how important friendship and being a strong woman is in this day and age. It helped solidify how important it is to teach our young women that "No" is a valid answer, and how to take care of themselves, and that if a man won't take no for an answer, you have every right to break his nose. It made me grateful for how strong my friendship group was during high-school, and how strong we still are now, almost 12 years after we all met.
If The Nowhere Girls are every girl, I am proud to be a Nowhere Girl.
Ultimately, this book gets a 10/10 from me. Please pick this up if you can. It is so, so important.
I'll see you next time, then.
Ree xo
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