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Women Talking

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Women Talking

By: Miriam Toews
Narrated by: Matthew Edison
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About this listen

Between 2005 and 2009, in a remote religious Mennonite colony, over a hundred girls and women were knocked unconscious and raped, often repeatedly, by what many thought were ghosts or demons, as a punishment for their sins. As the women tentatively began to share the details of the attacks - waking up sore and bleeding and not understanding why - their stories were chalked up to 'wild female imagination.'

Women Talking is an imagined response to these real events. Eight women, all illiterate, without any knowledge of the world outside their colony and unable even to speak the language of the country they live in, meet secretly in a hayloft with the intention of making a decision about how to protect themselves and their daughters from future harm. They have two days to make a plan, while the men of the colony are away in the city attempting to raise enough money to bail out the rapists (not ghosts as it turns out but local men) and bring them home.

©2018 Miriam Toews (P)2018 Penguin Random House Canada Ltd Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Thriller & Suspense Fiction Suspense
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Slow paced, not for everyone but I enjoyed it. Excellent narrator performance and writing quality.

Lovely book to sit with

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A harrowing story full of humanity and love. Wonderful narration and the final chapter was such a brilliant way to close the story

Lovely and impactful

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A truly remarkable piece of writing. Towes manages to convey the strength and bravery of these women as it plays out alongside their fierce intellect, grace, compassion, and conviction to do what is right for themselves and their children.

PS The reviewer who wrote of his/her dismay that a man was reading the book, clearly did not listen to the book! This is definitely a feminist work but so much more than that too.

Brilliant.

Remarkable, moving, inspirational

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This book needs to be read with philosophical empathy – the reader needs to step into the loft with the women, and be part of the conversation and allow yourself to put yourself in their shoes, and consider the debate. They put forward, and what your own Stants would be. This is not a story that you sit back and just read; it requires thought, and a little time to process. Having said this, though, it was a good read, and I found it hard to put down. A good book for the reader who likes to think!

Thought-provoking and captivating!

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It was both harrowing and uplifting equally
-the narration was beautiful and sensitive-all in all an enriching experience
I am looking forward to seeing the film now

Very special story

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So excited to see the film, what an incredible story - heartbreaking to know it’s inspired by true events.

Devastating

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What an experience to share with these courageous women.
Whilst the subject is harrowing the relationships between them is compelling. What a hard layered decision they are faced with.

Moving

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This is a book about women talking, the experience of women being abused. The entire premise of the book is to give these women a platform for their story, to share their voice. But it is narrated by a man! What on earth were the author, editors and Audible thinking? It completely nullifies the book by having a man narrate it.

I reached out to the editor, author, publishers and audible to get a response as to why a man is narrating this. Not one person bothered to answer. This is how little they care about the women in this story.

I fast forwarded the book purely to be able to leave this review. A woman's voice is so often over-written or drowned out by men - that's a fact. Why on earth would you devalue and harm these women by taking away their voice and replacing it with a man. it is an utter disgrace.

NOOO!! If you care about women and their voice...

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.