When Women Were Dragons: an enduring, feminist novel from New York Times bestselling author, Kelly Barnhill

When Woman Were Dragons habe ich zufällig in der Buchhandlung meines Vertrauens gesehen und habe gleich gewusst: ohne dieses Buch werde ich diesen Laden nicht verlassen. Denn sowohl Titel, als auch die Inhaltsbeschreibung haben mich gleich angesprochen und die wundervolle Aufmachung ist auch nicht zu verachten. Schon nach wenigen Seiten ist mir aufgefallen, wie gut die Geschichte in die Realität eingebaut wurde. Auch Alex Erzählungen erinnert eher an eine Biografie als an ein Fantasy-Buch. So konnte mich die Autorin sofort in ihren Bann ziehen. Auch die historisch-wissenschaftlichen Zwischenberichte haben dieses Gefühl bravourös ergänzt. Immer wieder wird man mit der Frage konfrontiert, warum es diese massenhaften Drachenwandlungen gibt und warum das alle Menschen wieder vergessen zu scheinen. Alle Augenzeugenberichte werden als Verschwörungsmythen abgetan und generell ist die Verbreitung des Themas verboten. Das hat mir hier einen richtigen Spannungskick gegeben und ich wollte das Buch am liebsten in einem Zug inhalieren. Viele Situationen mit (nicht ganz zufällig, denke ich) meistens Männern dieser Zeit machten mich richtig wütend und schrien mich förmlich an, die geschlechtsspezifische/ frauenfeindliche Behandlung ungerecht zu finden und meinen inneren feministischen Drachen zu wecken. Es wird zeitweise auch wirklich düster und unangenehm, so zum Beispiel wie Alex von ihrem Vater behandelt wird.... Immer mehr wird deutlich worum es geht: peinliche Weiblichkeit, welche so nicht in die Gesellschaft passt. Und Alex steht bald im Zwiespalt, welche Zukunft sie sich für ihre Schwester Beatrice und sich selbst wünscht.

All women are magic. Literally all of us. It's in our nature. It's best you learn that now. She was afraid of losing her and being alone forever if she let her become who she really is. ~ a dragon 🐉 Definitely a highlight of the year! "When Women Were Dragons" was a gift that I read in just a few days. Although the story was a little confusing at first, as it was told from the perspective of a four-year-old, it captivated me throughout. Alex Green has been reporting about her life since she was four years old. We accompany her from an early age through her entire childhood, through highs and lows, through love and grief, through happiness and fear, until she finally finds peace. "There is certainly rage in this novel, but it is about more than that. In it‘s heart, this is a story about memory, and trauma. It's about the damage we do to ourselves and our community when we refuse to talk about the past. It's about the memories that we don't understand, and can't put into context, until we learn more about the world." I enjoyed loving together with Alex, hating with her, discovering new things with her, crying with her, despairing with her, and hoping again. This young girl had to grow up far too early, be responsible for two lives, and do so in a world where, as a woman, she was not allowed to complain. "Memory is a strange thing. It reorganizes and connects. It provides context and clarity; it reveals patterns and divergences. It finds the holes in the universe and stitches them closed, tying the threads together in a tight, unbreakable knot. I learned this from my mother. And now I will teach it to you." _____Spoilers_____ "Your situation, of course, is different. It's much trickier. You have a cousin who is your sister who is your child. You lost your mother for good at possibly the worst time for anyone to lose their mother. It wasn't her fault, and she tried her best, but there it is, and you were left alone. And you have a father who has abdicated his responsibility to a teenager, which is the lowest thing a man can do." Trough the book, Alex turns more and more to her mother. Concerning to her sister who absolutely wanted to dragoning, she was a little bit selfish. From the very beginning, I was thrilled and very impressed by the author's writing style and the way she managed to describe events in such a way that the descriptions fit to Alex's corresponding age as a child, a teenager, and finally as an experienced old woman. It all starts with an old Lady…it all will end with an old Lady…who has so many memories to share with everybody in the whole world.