Nnedi's Reviews > Desert Flower

I love this book. Waris' time in Somalia as a child was my favorite part. It was both disturbing and lovely and wholly real.

What I also love about this book is the way this book addressed Genital Mutilation. Discussion about problematic tribal rites like female genital mutilation is best done from within the culture as well as from the outside. If there is no point of view from the inside all it looks like is a bunch of outsiders calling a group of people barbarians. When people feel disrespected, people don’t listen. And if people do not listen, the practice simply continues. This is one of those insider books. Waris speaks out against FGM but she also shows and proclaims that she very much loves and respects her culture.

What I also love about Desert Flower is that it deals with FGM without having the issue consume the entire book. Waris was more than a victim of this traditional practice, much more. It's a well-rounded perspective.

Waris' tale is simply a great one. I'm not a fan of the modeling industry in the least. But this woman's story transcends that. It shows the journey of a feisty African girl turned woman both within her traditional community and within the traditional community of the West. The modeling industry very much represents Western tradition.

She finally goes in for the kill at the very end about FGM. All through the book I was WAITING for that, wishing for it. She summed it up really well and I was satisfied.

My only problem with the book, wasn’t really an problem. She seemed so forgiving of the West’s issues with black women and the Beauty Myth so pervasive in the modeling industry. I think this stems from her African upbringing, where she wasn’t born and raised around racism. For this reason, her world view and the places where she directs her anger are a little different. And that is ok.