In Review: Girls with Sharp Sticks
Since last Friday was International Women’s Day, how about reviewing a feminist book to celebrate the date? Girls with Sharp Sticks is another YA series by the author of The Program – also on my reading list – Suzanne Young. I had no idea the story I was about to read. I came in for the sci-fi and stayed for the feminism.
Title: Girls with Sharp Sticks Author: Suzanne Young Series: Girls with Sharp Sticks #1 Publication year: 2019 Length: 10 hours 35 minutes Genre: YA, Mystery, Thriller, Sci-fi Pace: Fast Story focus: Character & Plot
Innovations Academy is a very exclusive all-girls school set in a remote location. The girls are isolated from the town nearby to focus on their education. They are taught to be the best. Obedient, free from defiance, opinions, and individuality. Perfect wives, beautiful at all times, and well-behaved. Only the wealthiest parents can enlist their daughters to secure them a good husband in the future. But during one of their rare outings, Mena meets a boy. And a single spark ignites her curiosity, taking her on a journey to uncover the truth behind the Academy.
Girls with Sharp Sticks is a sci-fi thriller powered by girl power. It’s a feminist story that seems to be set many years ago when women were objects of contemplation. They were pretty to look at, pleasant to talk to, and quiet when they had. Perfect household management pets. With the bonus, they will not pee on your carpet! Get yours now! We quickly realise that something isn’t right about the Academy. The girls don’t know how badly they are being treated. They think it’s for the best, for their interest, to be an elite of wives that many strive to be but only a handful achieve. They are being brainwashed.
Although this story isn’t set in the past. The Academy has to keep the girls isolated from the people in town, from the internet, television, magazines, books, and movies. There are only a few books and movies they are allowed to read and watch because they are free from any feminist ideology. And that’s all working until Mena meets Jackson. Mena treats him like any other man she ever met and was taught to treat. Although Jackson acts very differently from the older men that usually visit the Academy. After an altercation with the Guardian, the girls’ keeper, Jackson tries to contact Mena again to see if she’s alright.
Jackson is a breath of fresh air when you’ve been inside the house all day. He’s just a boy who meets a cute girl and wants to know her. And for Mena, he’s interesting, new, and a connection to the world outside of the Academy. He’s the opposite of every man in the story and far from being the prince charming. He’s not the fine knight galloping in his white horse to save the princess. The princess can save herself in this one with the help of the other princesses. And while there’s the beginning of a love affair between the two, nothing happens. Jackson becomes the help on the outside. That one friend who will help you break out of prison. And since the girls are captives inside the Academy, moments with Jackson are rare. Rare enough for a romance subplot to never fully develop.
Meanwhile, I found Mena to be nerve-wracking in the beginning. She’s already so shaped by the Academy that she avoids her curiosity. She doesn’t need the Guardian or a teacher to suppress her wild thoughts because she does it herself. So at times, I wanted to scream at her to open her goddamn eyes. However, once she starts to poke around, that all changes. And she becomes focused and determined to uncover everything.
There are a lot of feminist views and explorations about how the men in the Academy treat the girls and what is expected of them. The many ways the patriarchy, sexism and misogyny act, condition, and hurt the girls. They are treated more often than not as objects and led to believe it’s normal. That they should be treated that way for one reason or another. But there’s also another side to the feminism. The camaraderie. The girls are very close to each other. While the men around them hate them, they don’t hate each other. They protect one another as best as they can, which is often very limited. Their relationship is also a big cause for their rebellion. The love they all share makes them defiant, fearless and protective. In the midst of all the hatred, there’s also a lot of love.
I could go on and on talking only about the feminist side of the story. Although there’s also a sci-fi side I’m hoping will be further explored in upcoming books. I’m not naming it because it’s an amazing plot twist. I started to suspect most plot twists when things went amiss. But I never fully saw everything that was coming. And it changes some of the meaning of the story. The feminist message is still important and central, although another has been introduced and not yet explored. I expect that theme to come up in later books since it can clash with the feminist message the girls are fighting for.
And for a little heads up, despite being a YA novel, there’s still a bit of body horror with a particular eyeball scene. I wasn’t expecting to read something so graphic. It made my stomach turn and was hard to read. It was something that came out of nowhere. Looking back now, I know it wasn’t as disgusting or violent as I was led to believe. Still, I don’t enjoy things done to eyeballs apart from their normal function, like blinking and crying. It was a tough part to go through. If you are squeamish with eyeballs like me, then be aware something happens.
Despite what some reviews online might say about the next two books in the series, I’m still planning to read them. As I said, I’m only looking forward to the next book to approach the sci-fi side of the story. I have no other expectations. So maybe I won’t be disappointed. Seeing the girls break free from the misogyny is very enjoyable, and tying it all into a sci-fi thriller, it’s even more.
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