Call number
FIC BYR
Collection
Genres
Publication
Crown (2014), 336 pages
Description
Fiction. Literature. Science Fiction. HTML: A debut that Neil Gaiman calls "Glorious. . . . So sharp, so focused and so human." The Girl in the Road describes a future that is culturally lush and emotionally wrenching. Monica Byrne bursts on to the literary scene with an extraordinary vision of the future. In a world where global power has shifted east and revolution is brewing, two women embark on vastly different journeys�??each harrowing and urgent and wholly unexpected. When Meena finds snakebites on her chest, her worst fears are realized: someone is after her and she must flee India. As she plots her exit, she learns of the Trail, an energy-harvesting bridge spanning the Arabian Sea that has become a refuge for itinerant vagabonds and loners on the run. This is her salvation. Slipping out in the cover of night, with a knapsack full of supplies including a pozit GPS, a scroll reader, and a sealable waterproof pod, she sets off for Ethiopia, the place of her birth. Meanwhile, Mariama, a young girl in Africa, is forced to flee her home. She joins up with a caravan of misfits heading across the Sahara. She is taken in by Yemaya, a beautiful and enigmatic woman who becomes her protector and confidante. They are trying to reach Addis Abba, Ethiopia, a metropolis swirling with radical politics and rich culture. But Mariama will find a city far different than she ever expected�??romantic, turbulent, and dangerous. As one heads east and the other west, Meena and Mariama's fates are linked in ways that are mysterious and shocking to the core. Written with stunning clarity, deep emotion, and a futuristic flair, The Girl in the Road is an artistic feat of the first order: vividly imagined, artfully told, and profoundly moving. From the Hardcover edition… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member gendeg
Monica Byrne's The Girl in the Road is an ambitiously inventive story set against a backdrop you rarely see in speculative fiction, where today's developing countries are tomorrow's superpowers, a world where "Africa is the new India, after India became the new America, after America became the new
Meena is an Ethiopian-born Indian woman on the run after a perceived attack by a shadowy assassin (or so she claims). She nurses a strange wound on her chest, a snake bite she explains. Still bleeding from the attack, she flees first to Mumbai before setting her sights on Africa. She eventually finds the Trail (officially called the Trans-Arabian Linear Generator), a hinged "bridge" that floats on the ocean and connects Mumbai and Djibouti.
Meena sees it as her ticket out of town. This floating structure spanning the Arabian Sea is 2,000 miles of superconductor panels that are positioned like stepping stones. This bridge-generator harvests and conducts the energy of the ocean's waves and sends them to a power grid. The bridge is a wondrous creation by Byrne. It made me think of a Mad Max-type superhighway for daredevils and wacky pilgrims—all who become instant fugitives since traveling on the Trail is illegal of course. Moving on the water, the Trail mimics the sinuous form of a snake, and that primal symbolism is infused heavily throughout the text. The Trail becomes the setting for where much of Meena's journey takes place.
Across the sea, Meena's foil is Mariama, an Ethiopian refugee and former child-slave who has embedded herself with a group of smugglers. The timeline of her story takes place a few decades before Meena.
It's the driving point of the narrative to find out how these two women are connected. At the outset, they are completely different: different timelines, different parts of the world, on journeys going in different directions (one goes east and the other goes west), even different gradients of sexuality. In Mariama's story, no Trail yet exists, but the smugglers are already trafficking the metallic hydrogen that will eventually make up Trail decades later. Eventually Bryne builds up the parallels between Meena and Mariama, most strikingly with the sexual awakenings of the two women. Yes, the explorations of female sexuality can get heavy-handed (and seem to have offended some readers, particularly one disturbing scene involving a young Mariama). For me what grated about the spectrum of sexual scenes wasn't their transgressive portrayals but that they felt forced. Byrne tries to be lyrical in her prose, and it often devolves into prose-acting-like-poetry writing. Sometimes it works in places; sometimes it doesn't.
The novel does drag in the middle. For a while it feels like nothing is happening. In fact, much of the pivotal action takes place not in the present but in flashbacks and recollections. For example, Meena keeps walking on the trail, stopping occasionally at "seasteads" along the way, and yet much of her story actually happens in her memory. In the present, we're treated to a lot of hallucinatory monologues and self-talk. This awkward pacing made for a boring read in parts.
The Girl in the Road is built on parallel mysteries, which finally come crashing together at the end of the book. The convergence is shocking. *SPOILER AHEAD: Who are Mariama and Meena? We realize they've been unreliable narrators all this time, and that the two women are related: mother and daughter, respectively. Byrne makes the reveal in a pretty grisly way ("Wow, I was not expecting that" was my reaction.) Finally the hallucinatory fog is lifted, but it's a sad ending. Meena and Mariama are two sides of a coin called trauma, and they pay a price for what they've done.*
For the sheer audacity of vision though, The Girl in the Road is a richly imaginative novel, and it certainly brings something fresh and different to the literary table. The non-Western setting is refreshing (more of this, please!). Her descriptions of future, imagined tech were also deftly done. Meena's world felt strange without being overly exotic, and astute readers will get their bearings soon enough. There are references to tablets and the Cloud/Web in Hindi-inflected argot. It's kind of cool. I wanted to spend more time in this world.
But this isn't a book about the future or new worlds. The Girl in the Road is a dark origins tale, a vision quest. It is a book that is about our oldest and most primal instincts.
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Britain, after Britain became the new Rome…" We're plugged into this world through the eyes of two characters—Meena and Mariama—who tell us their stories in alternating sections.Meena is an Ethiopian-born Indian woman on the run after a perceived attack by a shadowy assassin (or so she claims). She nurses a strange wound on her chest, a snake bite she explains. Still bleeding from the attack, she flees first to Mumbai before setting her sights on Africa. She eventually finds the Trail (officially called the Trans-Arabian Linear Generator), a hinged "bridge" that floats on the ocean and connects Mumbai and Djibouti.
Meena sees it as her ticket out of town. This floating structure spanning the Arabian Sea is 2,000 miles of superconductor panels that are positioned like stepping stones. This bridge-generator harvests and conducts the energy of the ocean's waves and sends them to a power grid. The bridge is a wondrous creation by Byrne. It made me think of a Mad Max-type superhighway for daredevils and wacky pilgrims—all who become instant fugitives since traveling on the Trail is illegal of course. Moving on the water, the Trail mimics the sinuous form of a snake, and that primal symbolism is infused heavily throughout the text. The Trail becomes the setting for where much of Meena's journey takes place.
Across the sea, Meena's foil is Mariama, an Ethiopian refugee and former child-slave who has embedded herself with a group of smugglers. The timeline of her story takes place a few decades before Meena.
It's the driving point of the narrative to find out how these two women are connected. At the outset, they are completely different: different timelines, different parts of the world, on journeys going in different directions (one goes east and the other goes west), even different gradients of sexuality. In Mariama's story, no Trail yet exists, but the smugglers are already trafficking the metallic hydrogen that will eventually make up Trail decades later. Eventually Bryne builds up the parallels between Meena and Mariama, most strikingly with the sexual awakenings of the two women. Yes, the explorations of female sexuality can get heavy-handed (and seem to have offended some readers, particularly one disturbing scene involving a young Mariama). For me what grated about the spectrum of sexual scenes wasn't their transgressive portrayals but that they felt forced. Byrne tries to be lyrical in her prose, and it often devolves into prose-acting-like-poetry writing. Sometimes it works in places; sometimes it doesn't.
The novel does drag in the middle. For a while it feels like nothing is happening. In fact, much of the pivotal action takes place not in the present but in flashbacks and recollections. For example, Meena keeps walking on the trail, stopping occasionally at "seasteads" along the way, and yet much of her story actually happens in her memory. In the present, we're treated to a lot of hallucinatory monologues and self-talk. This awkward pacing made for a boring read in parts.
The Girl in the Road is built on parallel mysteries, which finally come crashing together at the end of the book. The convergence is shocking. *SPOILER AHEAD: Who are Mariama and Meena? We realize they've been unreliable narrators all this time, and that the two women are related: mother and daughter, respectively. Byrne makes the reveal in a pretty grisly way ("Wow, I was not expecting that" was my reaction.) Finally the hallucinatory fog is lifted, but it's a sad ending. Meena and Mariama are two sides of a coin called trauma, and they pay a price for what they've done.*
For the sheer audacity of vision though, The Girl in the Road is a richly imaginative novel, and it certainly brings something fresh and different to the literary table. The non-Western setting is refreshing (more of this, please!). Her descriptions of future, imagined tech were also deftly done. Meena's world felt strange without being overly exotic, and astute readers will get their bearings soon enough. There are references to tablets and the Cloud/Web in Hindi-inflected argot. It's kind of cool. I wanted to spend more time in this world.
But this isn't a book about the future or new worlds. The Girl in the Road is a dark origins tale, a vision quest. It is a book that is about our oldest and most primal instincts.
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LibraryThing member bg853
I found this book to be a very difficult read.
There are two protagonists each one occupying a different timeline many years apart. Add to that a dystopian society, delusional characters, a world full of sci-fi inventions, violence and sex. I might have been able to handle all that but I found the
Sorry, but I do not recommend this one.
There are two protagonists each one occupying a different timeline many years apart. Add to that a dystopian society, delusional characters, a world full of sci-fi inventions, violence and sex. I might have been able to handle all that but I found the
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narrative disjointed and incoherent.Sorry, but I do not recommend this one.
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LibraryThing member Bitter_Grace
Monica Byrne has written an ambitious novel about a futuristic world in which Africa is the new cultural superpower, and the lines separating gender, race, language and class are all blurred. The story alternates between a young woman named Meena who embarks on a journey to Africa over the Trail,
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an energy-harvesting bridge spanning the Arabian Sea, and Mariama, a young slave girl who hitches a ride across Africa with a caravan. Both women are orphaned by violence and haunted by their pasts, and their journeys merge into a shocking discovery. Byrne’s writing style is bold and lyrical, and the story itself is like nothing I’ve ever read before. I couldn’t even begin to compare it to another book. Neither Meena nor Mariama are reliable narrators, their stories tinged with suppressed truth, and the reader is often left wondering which aspects of the story are real and which are imagined. A wildly inventive, mind-bending and surreal read. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookmuse56
This futuristic inventive adventure tale mesmerized me from the beginning with its captivating protagonists, beautifully rendered landscapes, and provocative themes. I was not quite sure what to expect from The Girl In the Road, but my past reading experience has shown that I enjoy stories that
Meena awakes with snakebites on her chest, thinking someone is out to get her, flees Mumbai deciding to go to Ethiopia to find out the truth of her mother’s death. And since she does not want to be tracked decides to take the Trail, an energy-harvesting bridge spanning from India to Africa. The only thing is the Trail has a mysterious aura of its own, and is a dangerous forbidden way. Mariama, a young girl is also fleeing her home in western Africa and joins a caravan of misfits going to Ethiopia. As one travels from east to west, and the other from west to east, both landing in the same place, now the new power center of the world is in in Africa and energy is the resource fueling this shift of power. My only nitpick is that the storyline sagged a little in the middle, but it did pick again for a stunning ending.
Byrne’s has penned an impressive debut of two strong appealing female protagonists of color seeped in the richness of an impressive non-European worldbuilding environment.
I received this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for a honest review.
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often defy fitting neatly into a specific genre. I enjoyed the format of the parallel storylines while both set in the future but not at the same time, and the tension building in each of the storylines knowing not quite how but still knowing they will intersect at some point.Meena awakes with snakebites on her chest, thinking someone is out to get her, flees Mumbai deciding to go to Ethiopia to find out the truth of her mother’s death. And since she does not want to be tracked decides to take the Trail, an energy-harvesting bridge spanning from India to Africa. The only thing is the Trail has a mysterious aura of its own, and is a dangerous forbidden way. Mariama, a young girl is also fleeing her home in western Africa and joins a caravan of misfits going to Ethiopia. As one travels from east to west, and the other from west to east, both landing in the same place, now the new power center of the world is in in Africa and energy is the resource fueling this shift of power. My only nitpick is that the storyline sagged a little in the middle, but it did pick again for a stunning ending.
Byrne’s has penned an impressive debut of two strong appealing female protagonists of color seeped in the richness of an impressive non-European worldbuilding environment.
I received this book from Blogging For Books in exchange for a honest review.
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LibraryThing member CatherineMarie
This was a very compelling read. Shown from the POVs of two different women, it is a story of relationships, life, growth, and family. Set in the not-too-distant future, in India and Africa. I Loved the little hints, nudges, and implications... and how the story really wove together by the end.
LibraryThing member literary.jess
I was very pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this book. I nearly stopped reading within the first section (Meena is hard to love), but was rewarded for my perseverance with the unfolding of Mariama's saga. I soon found myself unable to put the book down. As the story unfolds, Byrne
I recommend readers refer to a map of the regions described in the book while reading in order to understamd the magnitude of the stories.
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paints a very rich, complex picture of two separate yet intwined protagonists. I saw this novel as a genre-transcending bildungsroman. I recommend readers refer to a map of the regions described in the book while reading in order to understamd the magnitude of the stories.
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LibraryThing member mamzel
Two women set out on journeys from different origins but end up in the same place. Meena, an educated Indian woman leaves India using a bridge of energy generating platforms that span the Arabian Sea. Miriama leaves her home in western Africa, joins a caravan, and heads east toward Ethiopia. Each
Meena makes her way mostly by herself. She leaves India fully supplied with desalting kits, a device that holds all her favorite books to read (and what a list that was!) and a tricky little shelter that not only keeps out the rain and sun but can also be submerged when storms hit. Miriama, on the other hand, has nothing to take with her and joins with two truck drivers and a beautiful woman who are all heading to Ethiopia. Along the way she learns to read and write and also learns a lot about people.
The journey portion of the book was wonderful. Alternating between the two women, we learn a bit about the culture of India and Africa, and how these two cultures have intermingled. We get a glimpse of the fascinating technology of the near future (later half of the 21st century) but still see how these two geographical areas maintain a strong primitive feel. India still cannot shake the caste system and Africa still harbors the simmering disquiet between blacks and Arabic ethnicities. Where the women meet is in the center of a battle for Africa to reclaim its ability to support its own people where Indians have moved in to grow food to take back to India.
It's hard to name what genre this story belongs to. The technology is there but does not take center stage. It's all about the women, their past, their journey, and their final encounter.
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woman has an encounter with a snake (not so subtle metaphor for a part of the male anatomy) and bear its reminder daily. Meena has a five pointed bite in the middle of her chest and Miriama ate a piece of sea snake that seems to take up residence in her gut and causes her pain.Meena makes her way mostly by herself. She leaves India fully supplied with desalting kits, a device that holds all her favorite books to read (and what a list that was!) and a tricky little shelter that not only keeps out the rain and sun but can also be submerged when storms hit. Miriama, on the other hand, has nothing to take with her and joins with two truck drivers and a beautiful woman who are all heading to Ethiopia. Along the way she learns to read and write and also learns a lot about people.
The journey portion of the book was wonderful. Alternating between the two women, we learn a bit about the culture of India and Africa, and how these two cultures have intermingled. We get a glimpse of the fascinating technology of the near future (later half of the 21st century) but still see how these two geographical areas maintain a strong primitive feel. India still cannot shake the caste system and Africa still harbors the simmering disquiet between blacks and Arabic ethnicities. Where the women meet is in the center of a battle for Africa to reclaim its ability to support its own people where Indians have moved in to grow food to take back to India.
It's hard to name what genre this story belongs to. The technology is there but does not take center stage. It's all about the women, their past, their journey, and their final encounter.
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LibraryThing member snora
I read this novel as an Early Reviewer for Library Thing.
The plot involves two intertwining stories, both in a future time. One story concerns a young woman, Meena, who feels she in in danger. She escapes India for Africa by the Trail, a bridge spanning the Arabian sea. The other story relates the
I had two problems with the book. First, the beginning was too abrupt. It took me a few chapters to engage with the characters and the plot. The second problem was the use of sex in the book. I am not a prude and I have no problem with sex! However, in this novel, the sex was often violent and a little bit creepy at times.
I give this book a lukewarm recommendation. If you like dystopian literature, you might want to give it a whirl.
The plot involves two intertwining stories, both in a future time. One story concerns a young woman, Meena, who feels she in in danger. She escapes India for Africa by the Trail, a bridge spanning the Arabian sea. The other story relates the
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journey of a girl, Mariama, who is running away from home toward Ethiopia. On the way, she is guided and protected by a free spirited woman, Yemaya. The author, Monica Byrne, writes from the perspective of both characters through alternating chapters. She writes with a clear voice for each character, which was the strongest part of the novel. As the book proceeds, the reader is introduced to many parallels between Meena and Mariama leading to an interesting and, somewhat, surprising ending.I had two problems with the book. First, the beginning was too abrupt. It took me a few chapters to engage with the characters and the plot. The second problem was the use of sex in the book. I am not a prude and I have no problem with sex! However, in this novel, the sex was often violent and a little bit creepy at times.
I give this book a lukewarm recommendation. If you like dystopian literature, you might want to give it a whirl.
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LibraryThing member klarsenmd
I received this book as part of the LT early reviewer program. Set in the future, this story is a meshing of two different girls, both running from and toward their fates. The settings of India, the Trail, and Africa are nicely envisioned and the characters are interesting, but I really had a tough
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time with both voices used in alternating turns. I don't enjoy first person present tense and I am bothered by lack of quotations for dialogue. In addition to this, Meena's use of sex in every interaction got a little off putting after awhile. In a positive vein, it was a quick read and an interesting plot. All in all, probably not one I would recommend to many people. Show Less
LibraryThing member caalynch
I began this book with trepidation after reading some early reviews, however, it didn't take me long to come to really enjoy the journey of the two main characters. The book opens jarringly and it took awhile to keep step with the pace. However, once both separate journeys began, I was hooked. I
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enjoyed the descriptions of varied landscapes, cultures, and new technologies. Both characters had some extreme emotional baggage and pain and with some of their behaviors I could empathize; with some I could not. Byrne is a talented writer and use of language is extraordinary. Would definately recommend. Show Less
LibraryThing member lisally
Meena, a young woman in future India, flees her home after discovering a snake in her bed. Feeling her life is in danger, Meena heads north to Mumbai, where she learns of the “Trail,” a floating generator spanning the Arabian Sea that converts wave energy to electricity. Stories of travelers
Meena’s parallel is Mariama, a young girl from an earlier time in West Africa. After escaping slavery in Mauritania with her mother, Mariama too encounters a snake in her bed and runs away into the city. There, she sneaks aboard a caravan heading east to Ethiopia. Along the way Yemaya, a mysterious woman, joins the caravan and soon becomes the object of Mariama’s adulation.
The Girl in the Road had a really interesting future setting, both in its depiction of technology and uncommon settings. The real focus here, aside from Meena’s and Mariama’s physical journeys, are their sexual journeys and relationships. Meena in particular is fluid with her sexuality, and it’s good to see lots of diverse relationships depicted. That said, there is a lot of explicit sex here, some of it rather unpleasant. One particular scene involves an older woman pleasuring a young girl, which is depicted rather disturbingly as some kind of transcendent experience.
Both women are very unreliable narrators, and seem to have some form of mental illness; as a result only a few things are really made clear towards the end. Meena’s journey in particular gets increasingly surreal as it progresses. The two stories do converge in a pretty satisfying, interesting way, but the ultimate ending is still a bit muddled.
A review copy was provided through the Librarything Early Reviewers program
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crossing the trail, Meena is inspired to make the journey herself and return to her birthplace in Ethiopia.Meena’s parallel is Mariama, a young girl from an earlier time in West Africa. After escaping slavery in Mauritania with her mother, Mariama too encounters a snake in her bed and runs away into the city. There, she sneaks aboard a caravan heading east to Ethiopia. Along the way Yemaya, a mysterious woman, joins the caravan and soon becomes the object of Mariama’s adulation.
The Girl in the Road had a really interesting future setting, both in its depiction of technology and uncommon settings. The real focus here, aside from Meena’s and Mariama’s physical journeys, are their sexual journeys and relationships. Meena in particular is fluid with her sexuality, and it’s good to see lots of diverse relationships depicted. That said, there is a lot of explicit sex here, some of it rather unpleasant. One particular scene involves an older woman pleasuring a young girl, which is depicted rather disturbingly as some kind of transcendent experience.
Both women are very unreliable narrators, and seem to have some form of mental illness; as a result only a few things are really made clear towards the end. Meena’s journey in particular gets increasingly surreal as it progresses. The two stories do converge in a pretty satisfying, interesting way, but the ultimate ending is still a bit muddled.
A review copy was provided through the Librarything Early Reviewers program
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LibraryThing member Debra_Armbruster
This was a great book!
I had a difficult time explaining the book to friends who saw me reading _The Girl In The Road_. It's a genre-bender. Loosely classified as Sci-Fi, but with a folk tale twist. Hard to define. But the book was wonderful. I was sucked in to this beautiful, circuitous story with
An excellent read. Worthy of your time.
I had a difficult time explaining the book to friends who saw me reading _The Girl In The Road_. It's a genre-bender. Loosely classified as Sci-Fi, but with a folk tale twist. Hard to define. But the book was wonderful. I was sucked in to this beautiful, circuitous story with
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its complex female characters. There are recurring image of snakes weaving the twining tales of this heroine's quest together, as well as a study in the malleability of memory. An excellent read. Worthy of your time.
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LibraryThing member Xleptodactylous
Just couldn't quite get in to it. It wasn't written that poorly, but it felt like a big jumble at times, and I'm no fan of first person POV which put me off more. It was intriguing, though, and I may return to it.
LibraryThing member susanbeamon
This is where woman's literature and science fiction intersect. This story is set in the future, a future where climate change has increased the water level and made the world warmer, but those are things that are outside the story. They just sit in the background. Also in the background is a
I received this copy of the book free for review from Blogging for Books.
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technological marvel for turning the kinetic energy of wave motion into electricity. This marvel makes the road one of our pair of intertwined women travels physically as she examines her past. The other of this pair travels a physical road. They are separated by distance and by time, one before the other, one involved in creating the circumstances of the other. At first I thought they were more physically related, like mother and daughter, but the relationship is more ethereal.I received this copy of the book free for review from Blogging for Books.
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LibraryThing member jen.e.moore
This was just outstanding, an impressive and faintly terrifying book that left me with massive book hangover. It has enough layers that I look forward to reading it again, but I enjoyed watching the contradicting and enmeshing stories spin out the first time, too - I don't know how coherent I can
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be about this book, it was too great. Show Less
LibraryThing member BethlynnD
This book took me forever to read which was extremely disappointing to me since usually a good book for me is a book that has me hooked where I can’t stop reading. Yet, The Girl in the Road was so fascinating that I actually found myself taking each page slowly because I wanted to absorb each
I originally picked this book out because I’m a huge science fiction fan and was intrigued by Monica Byrne’s author bio. According to her goodreads bio, she “has a pilot’s license (from when she wanted to be an astronaut), a yoga teacher certification (from when she realized she didn’t want to be an astronaut), and one very-marked-up-passport (from when she realized she was an artist).” I was blown away by how much life experience she had the opportunity to grasp from these three adventures and knew that this book would be full of intriguing ideas.
I will admit, I was not disappointed in Monica Byrne. Her writing style is profound and honest. The details in the story are precise and elaborate which made the locations intriguing. What I didn’t like however about The Girl in the Road was how the stories were separated between Mariama and Meena. The story starts out in third-person with Meena as the main character and I fell in love with her. She was mysterious and I found myself wanting to be her best friend. My favorite moment with her is when she is in the HydraCorp Museum and meets Lucia. In this moment she is so free and real that at that very moment I knew this would be a character I would love.
But….a few pages later the story shifts to Mariama’s point of view and although the chapter was brief before returning to Meena it was enough to make my interest in the story disappear entirely. From there, I found the story enjoyable just not as much as I had in the first two chapters of the book. I still enjoyed the book and thought it was brilliant how Mariama and Meena were connected I still found myself wishing that they were two different books.
However, what did bother me about the book was how unnecessarily sexually everything had to be. I am completely accepting of this being a different time from our current world but I still didn’t think the random initiations of sexual encounters was necessary. My biggest example being when Meena arrives in Ethiopia, she’s already had sex with two different “strangers” within a day of her arrival. It didn’t seem very relevant and since sexually explicit books usually aren’t my thing, I found myself skimming through certain scenes because I simply wasn’t interested. I figure if I want to read a feel-good-book I’ll go read a Nicholas Sparks or Danielle Steel book instead.
Overall, the number of people I would recommend this book to is pretty slim since many people I know aren’t interested in Sci Fi and if they are this defiantly doesn’t make the cut. However, I would recommend it to any reader interested in a good adventure story about self-discovery.
Note: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this honest review.
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second of Byrne’s world.I originally picked this book out because I’m a huge science fiction fan and was intrigued by Monica Byrne’s author bio. According to her goodreads bio, she “has a pilot’s license (from when she wanted to be an astronaut), a yoga teacher certification (from when she realized she didn’t want to be an astronaut), and one very-marked-up-passport (from when she realized she was an artist).” I was blown away by how much life experience she had the opportunity to grasp from these three adventures and knew that this book would be full of intriguing ideas.
I will admit, I was not disappointed in Monica Byrne. Her writing style is profound and honest. The details in the story are precise and elaborate which made the locations intriguing. What I didn’t like however about The Girl in the Road was how the stories were separated between Mariama and Meena. The story starts out in third-person with Meena as the main character and I fell in love with her. She was mysterious and I found myself wanting to be her best friend. My favorite moment with her is when she is in the HydraCorp Museum and meets Lucia. In this moment she is so free and real that at that very moment I knew this would be a character I would love.
But….a few pages later the story shifts to Mariama’s point of view and although the chapter was brief before returning to Meena it was enough to make my interest in the story disappear entirely. From there, I found the story enjoyable just not as much as I had in the first two chapters of the book. I still enjoyed the book and thought it was brilliant how Mariama and Meena were connected I still found myself wishing that they were two different books.
However, what did bother me about the book was how unnecessarily sexually everything had to be. I am completely accepting of this being a different time from our current world but I still didn’t think the random initiations of sexual encounters was necessary. My biggest example being when Meena arrives in Ethiopia, she’s already had sex with two different “strangers” within a day of her arrival. It didn’t seem very relevant and since sexually explicit books usually aren’t my thing, I found myself skimming through certain scenes because I simply wasn’t interested. I figure if I want to read a feel-good-book I’ll go read a Nicholas Sparks or Danielle Steel book instead.
Overall, the number of people I would recommend this book to is pretty slim since many people I know aren’t interested in Sci Fi and if they are this defiantly doesn’t make the cut. However, I would recommend it to any reader interested in a good adventure story about self-discovery.
Note: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this honest review.
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LibraryThing member BethlynnD
This book took me forever to read which was extremely disappointing to me since usually a good book for me is a book that has me hooked where I can’t stop reading. Yet, The Girl in the Road was so fascinating that I actually found myself taking each page slowly because I wanted to absorb each
I originally picked this book out because I’m a huge science fiction fan and was intrigued by Monica Byrne’s author bio. According to her goodreads bio, she “has a pilot’s license (from when she wanted to be an astronaut), a yoga teacher certification (from when she realized she didn’t want to be an astronaut), and one very-marked-up-passport (from when she realized she was an artist).” I was blown away by how much life experience she had the opportunity to grasp from these three adventures and knew that this book would be full of intriguing ideas.
I will admit, I was not disappointed in Monica Byrne. Her writing style is profound and honest. The details in the story are precise and elaborate which made the locations intriguing. What I didn’t like however about The Girl in the Road was how the stories were separated between Mariama and Meena. The story starts out in third-person with Meena as the main character and I fell in love with her. She was mysterious and I found myself wanting to be her best friend. My favorite moment with her is when she is in the HydraCorp Museum and meets Lucia. In this moment she is so free and real that at that very moment I knew this would be a character I would love.
But….a few pages later the story shifts to Mariama’s point of view and although the chapter was brief before returning to Meena it was enough to make my interest in the story disappear entirely. From there, I found the story enjoyable just not as much as I had in the first two chapters of the book. I still enjoyed the book and thought it was brilliant how Mariama and Meena were connected I still found myself wishing that they were two different books.
However, what did bother me about the book was how unnecessarily sexually everything had to be. I am completely accepting of this being a different time from our current world but I still didn’t think the random initiations of sexual encounters was necessary. My biggest example being when Meena arrives in Ethiopia, she’s already had sex with two different “strangers” within a day of her arrival. It didn’t seem very relevant and since sexually explicit books usually aren’t my thing, I found myself skimming through certain scenes because I simply wasn’t interested. I figure if I want to read a feel-good-book I’ll go read a Nicholas Sparks or Danielle Steel book instead.
Overall, the number of people I would recommend this book to is pretty slim since many people I know aren’t interested in Sci Fi and if they are this defiantly doesn’t make the cut. However, I would recommend it to any reader interested in a good adventure story about self-discovery.
Note: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this honest review.
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second of Byrne’s world.I originally picked this book out because I’m a huge science fiction fan and was intrigued by Monica Byrne’s author bio. According to her goodreads bio, she “has a pilot’s license (from when she wanted to be an astronaut), a yoga teacher certification (from when she realized she didn’t want to be an astronaut), and one very-marked-up-passport (from when she realized she was an artist).” I was blown away by how much life experience she had the opportunity to grasp from these three adventures and knew that this book would be full of intriguing ideas.
I will admit, I was not disappointed in Monica Byrne. Her writing style is profound and honest. The details in the story are precise and elaborate which made the locations intriguing. What I didn’t like however about The Girl in the Road was how the stories were separated between Mariama and Meena. The story starts out in third-person with Meena as the main character and I fell in love with her. She was mysterious and I found myself wanting to be her best friend. My favorite moment with her is when she is in the HydraCorp Museum and meets Lucia. In this moment she is so free and real that at that very moment I knew this would be a character I would love.
But….a few pages later the story shifts to Mariama’s point of view and although the chapter was brief before returning to Meena it was enough to make my interest in the story disappear entirely. From there, I found the story enjoyable just not as much as I had in the first two chapters of the book. I still enjoyed the book and thought it was brilliant how Mariama and Meena were connected I still found myself wishing that they were two different books.
However, what did bother me about the book was how unnecessarily sexually everything had to be. I am completely accepting of this being a different time from our current world but I still didn’t think the random initiations of sexual encounters was necessary. My biggest example being when Meena arrives in Ethiopia, she’s already had sex with two different “strangers” within a day of her arrival. It didn’t seem very relevant and since sexually explicit books usually aren’t my thing, I found myself skimming through certain scenes because I simply wasn’t interested. I figure if I want to read a feel-good-book I’ll go read a Nicholas Sparks or Danielle Steel book instead.
Overall, the number of people I would recommend this book to is pretty slim since many people I know aren’t interested in Sci Fi and if they are this defiantly doesn’t make the cut. However, I would recommend it to any reader interested in a good adventure story about self-discovery.
Note: I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this honest review.
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LibraryThing member mmoj
I received this ARC copy from Read It Forward. This was a thought provoking book and very much outside my usual books - and was really looking forward to the story. But there is just SO many issues covered, it was almost more than the story could handle. Add to that fact that the story is set in
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India and Africa (so readers who are unfamiliar with the language and geography my get a little lost) and is the story of two women - well a child and a woman - who each tell their stories and the reader really ha to work to appreciate the beauty and depth of the story. I found it easier to understand Mariana's story because she really only had one person that she talked to whereas Meena had many. Together there is so much pain that is never really expressed. This is one of those books that you need to read a few times to appreciate all that it entails. Show Less
LibraryThing member mmoj
I received this ARC copy from Read It Forward. This was a thought provoking book and very much outside my usual books - and was really looking forward to the story. But there is just SO many issues covered, it was almost more than the story could handle. Add to that fact that the story is set in
Show More
India and Africa (so readers who are unfamiliar with the language and geography my get a little lost) and is the story of two women - well a child and a woman - who each tell their stories and the reader really ha to work to appreciate the beauty and depth of the story. I found it easier to understand Mariana's story because she really only had one person that she talked to whereas Meena had many. Together there is so much pain that is never really expressed. This is one of those books that you need to read a few times to appreciate all that it entails. Show Less
LibraryThing member mmoj
I received this ARC copy from Read It Forward. This was a thought provoking book and very much outside my usual books - and was really looking forward to the story. But there is just SO many issues covered, it was almost more than the story could handle. Add to that fact that the story is set in
Show More
India and Africa (so readers who are unfamiliar with the language and geography my get a little lost) and is the story of two women - well a child and a woman - who each tell their stories and the reader really ha to work to appreciate the beauty and depth of the story. I found it easier to understand Mariana's story because she really only had one person that she talked to whereas Meena had many. Together there is so much pain that is never really expressed. This is one of those books that you need to read a few times to appreciate all that it entails. Show Less
LibraryThing member gypsysmom
Well, I'm still processing this book and probably will be for a while but I know I liked it. This is a first novel and there are perhaps a few first novel foibles but it is hard hitting and well written. I can hardly wait to see what Monica Byrne comes up with next.
Meena is a young Brahmin fleeing
Both their journeys are times of discovery and also times of mental instability. They have both experienced trauma and they don't always tell the truth. We know that there must be some link between these two main characters but it is not the one that seems obvious. Read carefully.
Some reviewers have been distressed by all the sex in the book. I did not find it excessive or unnecessary; I felt it was a dimension of these characters that was probably due to the affection they missed growing up. I can see that it might bother some people though so I have given fair warning.
From Monica Byrne's author picture she is neither African nor East Indian but I think she did an excellent job of portraying both ethnicities. It would be interesting to know what people of those backgrounds think.
I predict that Monica Byrne will be a science fiction author to watch.
Meena is a young Brahmin fleeing
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an attempt on her life. She goes to Mumbai and there learns about The Trail, a massive wave energy project in the Arabian Sea that stretches from India to Africa. Meena's parents were Indian doctors who were killed in Addis Ababa and she decides to walk the Trail all the way to Africa to find out what she can about their death. In alternating chapters we follow Mariama, a seven-year-old from West Africa who runs away from home and stows away in a convoy of trucks heading to Ethiopia. When she is found the boss decides to let her stay because he cannot send her back to poverty and slavery. Several days later a beautiful young woman joins the convoy and undertakes Mariama's education.Both their journeys are times of discovery and also times of mental instability. They have both experienced trauma and they don't always tell the truth. We know that there must be some link between these two main characters but it is not the one that seems obvious. Read carefully.
Some reviewers have been distressed by all the sex in the book. I did not find it excessive or unnecessary; I felt it was a dimension of these characters that was probably due to the affection they missed growing up. I can see that it might bother some people though so I have given fair warning.
From Monica Byrne's author picture she is neither African nor East Indian but I think she did an excellent job of portraying both ethnicities. It would be interesting to know what people of those backgrounds think.
I predict that Monica Byrne will be a science fiction author to watch.
Show Less
LibraryThing member mmoj
I received this ARC copy from Read It Forward. This was a thought provoking book and very much outside my usual books - and was really looking forward to the story. But there is just SO many issues covered, it was almost more than the story could handle. Add to that fact that the story is set in
Show More
India and Africa (so readers who are unfamiliar with the language and geography my get a little lost) and is the story of two women - well a child and a woman - who each tell their stories and the reader really ha to work to appreciate the beauty and depth of the story. I found it easier to understand Mariana's story because she really only had one person that she talked to whereas Meena had many. Together there is so much pain that is never really expressed. This is one of those books that you need to read a few times to appreciate all that it entails. Show Less
LibraryThing member andreablythe
For some reason I thought The Girl in the Road was going to be an entirely different book than what it was — I'm not sure why. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the story about two very different women making long journeys, both escaping from danger (perceived or real), both looking for hope at the
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end of the road. One makes her journey as a young girl by sneaking aboard a truck crossing Africa, the other walks along the snakelike spine of the Trail, an energy generation system spanning from India to Ethiopia. This story is richly textured, with complex characters and explorations of sex, self, and sanity. A great read (although I really didn't understand the epilogue and if someone wants to explain it to me that would be awesome). Show Less
LibraryThing member SChant
Tiptree winner 2014
A long meander that doesn't really get anywhere.
A long meander that doesn't really get anywhere.
LibraryThing member carolyninjoy
I received a free kindle copy of The Girl in the Road by Monica Byrne, published by Crown Publishing from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
I gave this intriguing, brilliantly written unusual novel which takes place in the future five stars. It was a page turner for me. There are blends of
I gave this intriguing, brilliantly written unusual novel which takes place in the future five stars. It was a page turner for me. There are blends of
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reality & imagination in the telling of the tale of two girls. It has a remarkable conclusion. I look forward to more writing from this author. Show Less
Awards
Otherwise Award (Winner — 2014)
DSC Prize for South Asian Literature (Longlist — 2016)
The Kitschies (Finalist — 2014)
Pages
336
ISBN
0804138842 / 9780804138840