It has taken me some time to get round to writing this review. I have given the book a lot of thought and read it twice.
I used to work with Asylum Seekers from the Democratic Republic of Congo and so was not unaware of the atrocities and political unrest which blight the country. The politics of the DR Congo and the details behind the country’s imbalance are explained in a very clear and interesting way; I was impressed by the way in which Lisa Shannon made a sometimes confusing and bewildering history so accessible.
In a nutshell, A Thousand Sisters details Shannon’s work to raise awareness and money for abused and tortured Congolese women. Inspired by a report by the founder of a charity called Women for Women International, on the Oprah Winfrey Show in 2006, Shannon decided to run her first marathon, in order to raise money to help Congolese women. She started a program called Run for Congo Women, and after her first visit to the country, she began to work with Women for Women International, on a sponsorship scheme for Congolese women, matching them with ‘sisters’ in America. The idea behind the charity is for the women to exchange letters about their lives, and for the American women to sponsor their ‘sister’ with monthly contributions of $27 US. This scheme provides an easy way to sponsor women in need, in six different war torn countries, including the Congo.
Something which is immediately evident is that Lisa Shannon is remarkable in her strength and courage. Her determination and passion for change in the face of being confronted with the unimaginable is, to say the least, inspiring. She herself makes no suggestion that what she is doing is in any way extraordinary, however. Indeed, she records her naïve stumbles and inappropriate moments as readily as she writes about the successes she has, the people she meets and their stories.
I have a few criticisms of the book which do not belie its purpose, which is to raise Western awareness about a terrible situation. I shall try to be brief. It included a great deal of graphic and shocking details – the result of this is that the reader becomes a little desensitized and the message starts to be watered down. The cynic in me wondered if perhaps such stories had been included in order to boost sales. The humanist in me tells the cynic to behave itself.
I felt that at times the writing was shallow, which is an odd thing to say about such a deep subject matter. Shannon includes information about aspects of her own love life, for example, and this adds nothing to the story. In fact, it detracts from the point. The reason she has included the information is, I think, to demonstrate that she needed a refuge from the horror of the Congo, and was able to find it in the arms of her nameless lover, referred to only as ‘Mr D’.
The novel was very ‘American’, and didn’t manage to escape some of the affectedness which I too often see in works by American authors. She talks about the women she meets being her ’heroes’, which I found grating, and a term that just didn’t fit. The women in the book had lived through hell and back, yes, but not by choice. They were left with no option but to continue their lives – though shattered – as best they could.
In summary, A Thousand Sisters describes a fantastic initiative and gives a detailed and moving insight into the project itself and the people it benefits. As a written text, I felt that parts were not particularly well executed, but I don’t think that this would put most people off being touched by the content and subject matter.
Visit these websites to sponsor a Congolese woman and for more information about Run for Congo Women and Women for Women International:
Interesting review. Thank you. When you feel that a story is valuable it is difficult to be genuine about its shortcomings as a text. You haven’t deterred me from wanting to read this though!
Great, I was hoping it wouldn’t. Like you say, it carries a terribly important message and I’d hate to think I’d put anyone off reading it. I suppose if you pick up this sort of book you’re not necessarily looking for a fabulously written story, more for an education.