The Girl Who Smiled Beads Explained

The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story About War and What Comes After
Author:Clemantine Wamariya and Elizabeth Weil
Country:United States
Language:English
Subject:Rwandan genocide, Rwandan Civil War
Genre:Memoir
Publisher:Doubleday Canada
Release Date:April 24, 2018
Media Type:Print
Isbn:9780385687003

The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story About War and What Comes After is a memoir by Clemantine Wamariya, written alongside Elizabeth Weil, published April 24, 2018 by Doubleday Canada. The memoir follows Wamariya's experience as a childhood refugee from Rwanda. The book was a New York Times best seller,[1] was critically acclaimed, and received various accolades.

Plot

The Girl Who Smiled Beads begins in Rwanda during the Rwandan Civil War, when Wamariya was six years old. Alongside her sister Claire, Wamariya fled Rwanda, spending the next six years traveling through seven African countries as refugees. In 2000, the Wamariya sisters were granted asylum in the United States, and they landed in Chicago, unsettled. Although Wamariya spoke five languages, she did not speak English, and at twelve years old, she had never attended school formally. The Girl Who Smiled Beads showcases how, even after being granted asylum, refugees often do not feel settled and struggle to find their way in a new country.

Reception

The Girl Who Smiled Beads was a New York Times best seller.

The book received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, calling it "a powerful coming-of-age story."[2] [3] It also received positive reviews from The Washington Post,[4] Star Tribune,[5] Booklist,[6] [7] Kirkus Reviews,[8] Library Journal,[9] and The Atlantic.[10] The New York Times Book Review provided a mixed review.[11] The New York Times included it in one of their "recommended books" lists.[12]

Beyond popular media outlets, The Girl Who Smiled Beads has been discussed in academic contexts, including The Lancet,[13] Roots International Journal of Multidisciplinary Researches,[14] and Journal of the Campus Read.[15] [16] [17] [18]

Accolades for The Girl Who Smiled Beads!Year!Accolade!Result!Ref.
2019Andrew Carnegie Medals for ExcellenceLonglist[19]
Alex AwardWinner[20]
2018Goodreads Choice Award for Memoir & AutobiographyNominee[21]
Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2018Selection[22]
Kirkus Reviews' Best Biographies of 2018Selection[23]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After. 2021-12-22. IndieBound. en.
  2. Web site: 2018-03-19. Nonfiction Book Review: The Girl Who Smiled Beads by Clemantine Wamariya and Elizabeth Weil. Crown, $26 (288p) ISBN 978-0-451-49532-7. This book is not a conventional story about war and its aftermath; it’s a powerful coming-of-age story in which a girl explores her identity in the wake of a brutal war that destroyed her family and home. . 2021-12-22. PublishersWeekly.com. en.
  3. Web site: 2018-06-25. Audio Book Review: The Girl Who Smiled Beads by Clemantine Wamariya and Elizabeth Weil, read by Robin Miles. Random House Audio, unabridged, 8 CDs, 9 hrs., $40 ISBN 978-0-525-52628-5. 2021-12-22. PublishersWeekly.com. en.
  4. News: A moment on 'Oprah' made her a human rights symbol. She wants to be more than that.. Nora Krug . “The Girl Who Smiled Beads” is at once terrifying and life-affirming. . en-US. Washington Post. 2021-12-22. 0190-8286.
  5. Web site: Hertzel. Laurie. July 6, 2018. Review: 'The Girl Who Smiled Beads,' by Clemantine Wamariya and Elizabeth Weil. Memoirs by immigrants and refugees are growing in number; they are important stories that need to be told, and told in the kind of bug-and-mud-and-dysentery detail that Wamariya’s is told.. 2021-12-22. Star Tribune.
  6. Book: Eathorne, Courtney. March 1, 2018. The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After. Sliding easily between past and present, this memoir is a soulful, searing story about how families survive.. 2021-12-22. Booklist.
  7. Book: July 2018. The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After. 2021-12-22. Booklist.
  8. Web site: February 20, 2018. The Girl Who Smiled Beads. Not quite as attention-getting as memoirs by Ismail Beah or Scholastique Mukasonga, but a powerful record of the refugee experience all the same.. 2021-12-22. Kirkus Reviews.
  9. Web site: The Girl Who Smiled Beads. 2021-12-22. Library Journal.
  10. Web site: Hulbert. Ann. 2018-04-24. 'The Girl Who Smiled Beads' Is a Revelatory Memoir of Survival. The fractured form of her own narrative—deftly toggling between her African and American odysseys—gives troubled memory its dark due. Healing does not spell an end to hurting.. 2021-12-22. The Atlantic. en.
  11. News: Okeowo. Alexis. 2018-05-07. From the Rwandan Genocide to Chicago: A Young Author Survived to Tell Her Story (subscription required). en-US. The New York Times. 2021-12-22. 0362-4331.
  12. News: 2018-05-24. 8 New Books We Recommend This Week (subscription required). en-US. The New York Times. 2021-12-22. 0362-4331.
  13. Kennedy. Anna. August 2018. The girl who shared her words. The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health. en. 2. 8. 560. 10.1016/s2352-4642(18)30218-9. 165189586. 2352-4642.
  14. Priyanga. V.. Davaseeli. G. Ruby. March 2021. Impact of civil wars in the memoirs of Clemantine Wamariya's The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After and Luong Ung's First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers. Roots International Journal of Multidisciplinary Researches. 7. 1. 100–138. 2349-8684.
  15. Rupp. Andrea. 2021. These Stories are Yours, These Stories are not Yours: On Wamariya's Framework of Sharing. Journal of the Campus Read. 1. 3. 1–5.
  16. Imming. Suzanne. 2021-06-14. The Building of Clemantine: Clemantine's life through architecture. Journal of the Campus Read. 1. 1. 10–16.
  17. Temme. Megan. 2021-06-14. When the Fighting Ceases. Journal of the Campus Read. 1. 1. 6–9.
  18. Thundiyil. Alex. 2021-06-14. Digital Story Telling: Clemantine's Life described through my lenses. Journal of the Campus Read. 1. 1. 17–24.
  19. Web site: 2020-10-19. 2019 Winners. 2021-12-22. Reference & User Services Association (RUSA). en.
  20. Web site: 2020-01-27. 2019 Alex Awards. 2021-12-22. Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). en.
  21. Web site: The Girl Who Smiled Beads. 2021-12-22. Goodreads.
  22. News: 50 notable works of nonfiction in 2018. en-US. Washington Post. 2021-12-22. 0190-8286.
  23. Web site: Best Biographies of 2018. 2021-12-22. Kirkus Reviews. en.

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