took me a while to read because i was consuming in parts on my commute to work but wow what an absorbing read. a lot of the time we think about how men treat women under this patriarchy but this book really put a spotlight too on how women treat each other. especially the grappling of feelings within oneself; knowing my own value as a woman is more than just my looks and what I can do for men, but also sometimes the want to acquiesce to that subservience. was really intrigued by how absorbed rika got with kajimana, and kajimana’s conflict between her words (“I hate the clammy nature of women”) and her actions (clinging to women). more quotes i’d highlighted on my kindle: “the changes to her body hadn’t caused them any trouble, and yet people’s reactions were critical, even fearful.” —> as someone who has been on the end people’s comments about my body since i was a child, it struck me to how briefly this FEAR was summarised in this novel. why are you fearful of my body!! why do you fear for me going into this world not skinny? “sometimes the worry she had - that this period of her life when she was at her most beautiful would be all used up by the girls around before she was discovered as a woman - would grow so intense that she wanted to curl up into a ball.” —> again, really captured the conflict between knowing your worth is not tied to men’s approval of your looks, but also wanting that approval.