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A review by kelboo
Honor Code by Kiersi Burkhart
5.0
Every woman can relate to this book. The permeating fear. The understanding that it can happen to anyone. The subsequent rage.
Superficially, "Honor Code" is a story about an alleged rape on campus. At its truth, it is a story about our society: the way sides are taken, the way events are spun by the media, the entitlement of some men to women's bodies, the slut-shaming and victim-blaming, the enablers, the privilege of the white upper class.
This story was not easy to read. The content was heavy, and the story unfolded in a raw, real way. Sam is someone I could know. In fact, Sam is someone I could be. It was difficult to read her story, relate to her struggles and her pain. It was also inspiring to see her champion her cause and find strength deep inside. But she throws a wrench in her own story, and makes us question what we know. Suddenly the lines are blurred -- black and white becomes grey, and I am confused and angry for new reasons. Because life -- and court cases -- are full of shades of grey. I am a sucker for a good unreliable narrator.
This year, TIME Magazine named their Person of the Year as The Silence Breakers. This book is intensely relevant, and supremely important, and needs to be read -- and felt -- by everyone who has ever thought they were alone in anything.
Superficially, "Honor Code" is a story about an alleged rape on campus. At its truth, it is a story about our society: the way sides are taken, the way events are spun by the media, the entitlement of some men to women's bodies, the slut-shaming and victim-blaming, the enablers, the privilege of the white upper class.
This story was not easy to read. The content was heavy, and the story unfolded in a raw, real way. Sam is someone I could know. In fact, Sam is someone I could be. It was difficult to read her story, relate to her struggles and her pain. It was also inspiring to see her champion her cause and find strength deep inside. But she throws a wrench in her own story, and makes us question what we know. Suddenly the lines are blurred -- black and white becomes grey, and I am confused and angry for new reasons. Because life -- and court cases -- are full of shades of grey. I am a sucker for a good unreliable narrator.
This year, TIME Magazine named their Person of the Year as The Silence Breakers. This book is intensely relevant, and supremely important, and needs to be read -- and felt -- by everyone who has ever thought they were alone in anything.