Half the Sky

It has been awhile since I have share a book review. Recently, I read Half the Sky as part of an assignment for my theology class. What an amazing and astonishing collection of stories the authors present in Half the Sky. Prior to reading this book, one might be under the impression that they have a decent understanding of the global issues women, especially what those in developing countries face each day. Often, simply by getting information online or via various news channels many who live in thriving parts of the country are quick to judge those in developing countries for lacking in some way whether it be educational, mental stability, or simple decency to not participate in the destruction of the people in their own country or cultural background. Reading Half the Sky will open the minds of its readers to the reality that what they once thought is not even close to the truth about the suffering of women in countries less fortunate than theirs.

In reading the title, Half the Sky, I initially thought this book would be a book about the daily struggles of women around the world such as poverty, a lack of education, a lack of medical care as well as a lack of a voice in their own lives. Half the Sky is so much more than that. This book truly brings to life real women who have suffered imaginable pain and a breakdown of one’s self worth to the point that once the book is read, the struggles of these women are very hard to ignore.

To be perfectly honest, I had a fluid wave of emotions while reading just the first seven chapters of the book. I have found this book to be one of the most powerful books I have ever read. Even though it is not written specifically in the book, Half the Sky is a call to action for all who read it. Anyone who reads this book will come to quickly understand that they can not stop at simply finishing the book but must take steps to somehow be involved in bringing about change to women everywhere.

The introduction allows us to get comfortable with the fact that we know, read stories and understand a bit about the different types of human trafficking that takes place in the United States. However, Half the Sky helps us to understand that while this is a widespread issue in the United States in developing countries many of these young girls are often sold by their own family members to traffickers. Being so poor and financially destitute, families literally must choose which child, most likely a daughter, to sacrifice so that others in the family can eat or at the very least have a fighting chance to survive a while longer is truly heartbreaking.

While many of the abuses and struggles of the women mentioned in the book were difficult to read, the one struggle I had the hardest time reading and learning about was fistulas. Fistulas is not something I was familiar with prior to reading Half the Sky. A simple Google search reveals that fistulas happen when there is a tear or injury to an abnormal connection between an organ or blood vessel or another structure (nafc.org).

Many women in developing countries suffered from this injury due to rape with foreign objects and childbirth. The rape of women is described in the book as a weapon of war and a way of systematically dishonoring women. Often the rapists, out of fear of getting the AIDS virus, will rape women with objects such as sticks and guns causing so much damage that women often develop a fistula. Due to the lack of medical care for women, often childbirth presents itself with so much tearing or the infant becoming stuck in the birth canal that the women and girls develop fistulas this way as well.

While many fistulas can be repaired, getting women the medical attention they need is often a challenge within itself. Women’s health is often not considered a necessity and they can spend years unable to walk with constant leakage coming from their bodies. What these women suffer is simply unimaginable. In reading this book, I have made so many connections to the poor treatment of women and girls and how in many societies and cultures, women and girls are often viewed as less than.

Even though my heart aches and so very often while reading Half the Sky I had tears in my eyes, this book is very much worth the read. I have learned that there is so much work left to be done to bring about the awareness to the suffering of women and girls. In order to minister to any women, those who desire to lead must understand the plight of all women around the world and I would totally recommend reading this book...immediately.