Aman: The Story of a Somali GirlThis is the extraordinary first-person account of a young woman's coming of age in Somalia and her struggles against the obligations and strictures of family and society. By the time she is nine, Aman has undergone a ritual circumcision ceremony; at eleven, her innocent romance with a white boy leads to a murder; at thirteen she is given away in an arranged marriage to a stranger. Aman eventually runs away to Mogadishu, where her beauty and rebellious spirit leads her to the decadent demimonde of white colonialists. Hers is a world in which women are both chattel and freewheeling entrepreneurs, subject to the caprices of male relatives, yet keenly aware of the loopholes that lead to freedom. Aman is an astonishing history, opening a window onto traditional Somali life and the universal quest for female self-awareness. |
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AMAN: The Story of a Somali Girl
User Review - KirkusA lyrical first-hand account of a complex and charismatic modern-day African heroine. ``Aman'' (a pseudonym meaning ``trustworthy'' in Arabic) is a gifted narrator who recounted her tumultuous life ... Read full review
Aman: the story of a Somali girl
User Review - Not Available - Book VerdictThough it could have been sensationalized, this is in fact an intimate look at the girlhood of a 20th-century Somali. At eight, Aman was circumcised; at 13, she was married to an older man who ... Read full review
Contents
Chapter 3 | |
Chapter 4 | |
Chapter 5 | |
Chapter 6 | |
Chapter 7 | |
Chapter 15 | |
Chapter 16 | |
Chapter 17 | |
Chapter 18 | |
Chapter 19 | |
Chapter 20 | |
Chapter 21 | |
Chapter 22 | |
Chapter 8 | |
Chapter 9 | |
Chapter 10 | |
Chapter 11 | |
Chapter 12 | |
Chapter 13 | |
Chapter 14 | |
Chapter 23 | |
Chapter 24 | |
Chapter 26 | |
Afterword | |
Notes | |
References | |
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Common terms and phrases
Abdalla Allah Aman Aman’s angry Antony Arabic asked baby Baidoa beautiful began boys brother brought camels circumcision clan clothes cousin daddy dance daughter didn’t know didn’t want divorce door drink Ethiopia everything father felt female circumcision gave girls give go back grandmama happened husband infibulation inside Islamic Italian Kenya kill kissed knew Laila Laitin and Samatar leave Lee Barnes Lewis lineage lived looked Mama Mama’s Mango Village marriage married milk Mogadishu morning mother Muslim Nairobi never nice night Nuur o’clock pain patrilineal police Qur’an Rahima scared sharmuuto shillings sister sleep Somali started stay Sudan Swahili talk Tanzania tell thing thought told took town tribe uncle wait walk want to go wasn’t wife woman women you’re zar ceremony Zaytuun
Bibliographic information
| Title | Aman: The Story of a Somali Girl |
| Contributors | Virginia Lee Barnes, Janice Boddy |
| Publisher | Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 2010 |
| ISBN | 0307554341, 9780307554345 |
| Length | 368 pages |
| Subjects | › › Biography & Autobiography / Cultural, Ethnic & Regional / General Biography & Autobiography / Women History / Africa / General |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |