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notesofacrocodile 's review for:
La Bastarda
by Trifonia Melibea Obono
hopeful
sad
la bastarda is a novella that is tiny, but with a quiet fire in it. it puts us in the perspective of a sixteen-year-old of the fang ethnic group, okomo: a bastarda (or bastard) left orphaned from the death of her mother while giving birth to her and the mysterious disappearance of her father soon after.
the themes touched upon the stifling, patriarchal structure of gender roles, as well as freedom from the restrictions of compulsory heterosexuality. gay men in her tradition are often derogatorily referred to as 'man-women', but lesbians are not referred to at all; in fact there's no word for it and so the nonlesbian characters in the story are also slightly skeptical of such a phenomenon. this also makes it all the more refreshing to see okomo refer to herself directly as a lesbian without any hesitation.
i saw a couple of reviews referring to how unrealistic it was for the characters to fall in love so quickly, after having known each other for less than a day. but honestly, i sort of get it- these girls found each other unexpectedly amongst a deeply queerphobic and misogynistic society, finding refuge in each other as individuals who wished to be free of the restrictions on their gender and sexuality. okomo herself is unsure of her attraction for women at the beginning, but there is an exhilaration as her sexual desires are realised; a feeling of liberation that most people she knows wouldn't experience themselves, or even understand. why would it be so unrealistic to fall in love as a sixteen-year-old who has not known affection of this kind till then, especially when it's this rare?
i cannot speak a lot about this book since it's small enough that i would end up giving the plot away, but i do think that as a novella it ties itself up decently by the end.
this is the first spanish story from equatorial guinea that is about lesbians and also the first story by a woman from equatorial guinea to be translated into english. incidentally, it also happens to be banned from the country. all this is to say that if you're looking for a short and insightful read for women in translation month, then look no further!
the themes touched upon the stifling, patriarchal structure of gender roles, as well as freedom from the restrictions of compulsory heterosexuality. gay men in her tradition are often derogatorily referred to as 'man-women', but lesbians are not referred to at all; in fact there's no word for it and so the nonlesbian characters in the story are also slightly skeptical of such a phenomenon. this also makes it all the more refreshing to see okomo refer to herself directly as a lesbian without any hesitation.
i saw a couple of reviews referring to how unrealistic it was for the characters to fall in love so quickly, after having known each other for less than a day. but honestly, i sort of get it- these girls found each other unexpectedly amongst a deeply queerphobic and misogynistic society, finding refuge in each other as individuals who wished to be free of the restrictions on their gender and sexuality. okomo herself is unsure of her attraction for women at the beginning, but there is an exhilaration as her sexual desires are realised; a feeling of liberation that most people she knows wouldn't experience themselves, or even understand. why would it be so unrealistic to fall in love as a sixteen-year-old who has not known affection of this kind till then, especially when it's this rare?
i cannot speak a lot about this book since it's small enough that i would end up giving the plot away, but i do think that as a novella it ties itself up decently by the end.
this is the first spanish story from equatorial guinea that is about lesbians and also the first story by a woman from equatorial guinea to be translated into english. incidentally, it also happens to be banned from the country. all this is to say that if you're looking for a short and insightful read for women in translation month, then look no further!