74 pages • 2 hours read
Wayetu MooreThe Dragons, the Giant, the Women: A Memoir
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 2020A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Before You Read
Super Short Summary
The Dragons, the Giant, the Women by Wayetu Moore recounts her experiences growing up in Liberia during the First Liberian Civil War, her family's harrowing escape, and their subsequent resettlement in the United States. The narrative follows young Wayetu from her fifth birthday in Caldwell, through her family's flight from advancing rebels, to a village across the border, before shifting to her adult life as a writer in Brooklyn, who confronts her past and returns to Liberia seeking closure. Descriptions of war violence and loss are present in the story.
Reviews & Readership
Review Roundup
Wayetu Moore's The Dragons, the Giant, the Women is praised for its compelling narrative that merges memoir and magical realism to depict her escape from civil war in Liberia. Critics commend its emotional depth and innovative structure. However, some find its shifts in perspective occasionally disorienting. Overall, it is a powerful and thought-provoking read.
Who Should Read The Dragons, the Giant, the Women?
Readers who appreciate memoirs intertwined with history and personal struggle will enjoy Wayetu Moore's The Dragons, the Giant, the Women. Fans of Ishmael Beah's A Long Way Gone or Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Half of a Yellow Sun will find Moore's narrative of war, displacement, and resilience compelling and evocative.
272
Autobiography / Memoir • Nonfiction
Liberia • 1990s
2020
Adult
18+ years
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