A review by yourbookishbff
They Called Me a Lioness: A Palestinian Girl's Fight for Freedom by Dena Takruri, Ahed Tamimi

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

Ahed Tamimi's memoir is a must-read for anyone committed to learning more about those advocating for Palestinian freedom. They Called Me a Lioness recounts the traumatic experiences of her childhood growing up under Israeli military occupation and witnessing the abuse, torture and murder of various family members as a young kid and then teen. As Ahed begins participating in protest marches and demonstrations organized by her parents, she becomes a visible figure in the Palestinian resistance movement for her continued presence and activism. She ultimately serves more than eight months in Israeli prison at 16 and 17 years old on charges of *assaulting an Israeli soldier (*slapping an armed soldier who had - the same day - shot her cousin in the face).  

The portions of her memoir that recount her time in prison, detailing the day-to-day life of women and children in Israeli prison for various political crimes (including many who are under "administrative detention" with no charges), are compelling reminders that Ahed is a child in prison. She's a teenager attempting to finish high school, reading romance novels to her cellmates as they make up their faces with the colored pencils provided to them by The Red Cross, laughing over toothpaste pranks and silly seances. She's a child, so feared by the Israeli government that they interrogate her multiple times and imprison her family members in attempts to compel her cooperation.

Ahed's memoir ends in hopeful advocacy and reflections on the globalization of the Palestinian cause. It's this hope and belief in a future free of apartheid that is most devastating for today's reader witnessing the atrocities in Gaza. As a pacifist Quaker, I believe Ahed's reflections on resistance are vital to all of those who stand against apartheid and state violence, and for all of those who ask themselves, as Ahed does, how we can resist violent systems of oppression.

I highly recommend the audiobook, narrated by co-author Dena Takruri.
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