The Good Girls
An Ordinary Killing
by Sonia Faleiro
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Pub Date 14 Jan 2021 | Archive Date 14 Jan 2021
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Description
A masterly and agenda-setting inquest into how the deaths of two teenage girls shone a light into the darkest corners of a nation
Katra Sadatgani. An eye-blink of a village in western Uttar Pradesh, crammed into less than one square mile of land. A community bounded by the certainty of the changing of the seasons, by tradition and custom; a community in which young women are watched closely, and know what is expected of them.
It was an ordinary night, in the middle of mango season, when the two girls first went missing. When the next day dawned, and their bodies were found – hanging in the orchard, their clothes muddied – only one thing seemed clear: that life in Uttar Pradesh would never be the same again.
Sixteen-year-old Padma had sparked and burned. Fourteen-year-old Lalli had been an incorrigible romantic. But who they were and what had happened to them were already less important than what their disappearance meant to the people left behind. In the ensuing months, the investigation into their deaths would implode everything that their small community held to be true, and instigated a national conversation about sex, honour and violence.
A masterly and agenda-setting inquest into how the deaths of two teenage girls shone a light into the darkest corners of a nation, The Good Girls returns to the scene of Padma and Lalli’s short lives and shocking deaths, and dares to ask: what is the human cost of shame?
Advance Praise
Praise for Sonia Faleiro:
‘A tour de force of reportage, whose depth, insight and resonance make it the equal of the best fiction' SUNDAY TIMES
'A small masterpiece of observation … Opens up a hidden world with startling insight and intimacy' WILLIAM DALRYMPLE
'Faleiro brings a novelist’s eye for detail and a depth of empathy to her work. A magnificent book of reportage that is also endowed with all the terror and beauty of art' KIRAN DESAI
'A tour de force of heartrending reportage ... which blends rigorous journalistic research with the narrative skills of a novelist' INDEPENDENT
Available Editions
| EDITION | Hardcover |
| ISBN | 9781408876725 |
| PRICE | £16.99 (GBP) |
Featured Reviews
Zoe A, Reviewer
This non-fiction book follows the stories of two teenage girls in Uttar Pradesh, India in 2014, who disappeared one night and were found hanging from a tree the next morning. The family, having no faith in the local police, refused to allow the bodies to be taken down in order to gain national media attention and demand justice for their children. The ensuing months led to a battle on understanding the events that took place, and a focus on ideas of gender, sex, honour and violence throughout India.
This was a hauntingly sad case to read about which will leave you more informed on the position of women around the world and the gender oppression that has existed and still exists. The author uses this one case of Padma and Lalli as a way to illuminate larger issues of sexual violence, caste issues, and the problems of the corrupt and incompetent police force, medical field, and government.
The book reads almost like non-fiction with the way the story is unravelled. It really comes across that the author has covered all bases in terms of interviewing the family of the victims and the accused, the police, reporters, neighbours and extended family, the medical team and more. There is a lot of information throughout this book and it could be hard to comprehend with all the various names, politics, and places that were mentioned, but in a way, this felt like a reflection of the complexity of fixing the issues prevalent in India.
My heart broke for Padma and Lalli, but I came away from this book with a better understanding of the issues faced by women around the world. I was moved, hurt and angry, but I am more educated for it, and I would recommend this book to others on this basis.
Kelly M, Media/Journalist
The Good Girls grips you from the first page. It makes you think, it makes you feel many emotions, as the story of the two girls unfolds.
It's a compelling and thought provoking read that leaves you questioning what you believe and think. The good Girls is a book that is one that would incite some interesting discussion in a book club and one which you will want to pass on to and discuss with friends and colleagues.
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