Mende NazerRezensionen

But as for me, I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more.- Psalms 71: 14

This book taught me that hope and faith in your heritage and faith in yourself can move valleys. Because there is always a better tomorrow. Never lose hope for a better tomorrow. Mende taught me through this work that it takes courage to tell your story even the most broken parts of it because telling your story is helping others to understand who you are and to not define you or put you in a box. Yes she was a slave. But she was first and foremost her daughter of her father. Then she was a Nuba. Then she was a Karko. Her father and her tribe kept her strong during her years of slavery. She has a better tomorrow today because she never gave up on believing that a better day would come and she was patient and wise enough to have a memory as sharp and refined as she does to recall everything that she experienced in slavery so that her story may not be in vain and that her message of love and freedom will always remain strong like a candle in our hearts.

Thank you Mende for sharing your astounding story.

Review: Slave by Mende Nazer~~Damien Lewis.

This book is a true story about a young girl, taken from her family in the middle of the night and forced to be a slave. This traumatic and extremely abusive situation is still going on today. This story was difficult to read , yet I read on and envisioned and felt the horror this one girl went through and just knowing that there are many more children and adults out there still fighting for freedom. Even though Mende’s story sadden me I’m glad I read the book and grateful to read Mende Nazer conclusion to her story. It was well written and an eye-opener to readers to know what goes on around us, each and everyday… “Child Abuse”…..

I’m having a hard time reviewing this book because it so unacceptable and disturbing what people can do to one another without a second thought. It’s more disturbing knowing that this tremendous act is still occurring in Sudan, the Middle East and North Africa.

Mende came from village in the Nuba Mountains in Sudan. At the age of twelve she was kidnapped by overpowering Arab raiders who killed the men, raped the women and captured the children of the rural village to sell as slaves. Mende was raped by an Arab raider and than sold to a cruel Arab family in Khartoum. At that home she was beaten, tortured and emotionally tormented by the evil women who Mende called, “Master Rahab”. Mende was a possession, paid no wages, given no freedom, often disgraced, her clothes were rags, and had only scraps of food to eat left over from the plates of the family’s dinner. After Mende got a certain age she was passed on to live in London with Master Rahab’s sister’s family. Rehab decided she wanted another young girl for her slave…..

There is so much to this story that I haven’t touched on to give other readers the interest and education to read the book….

Mende Nazer's absorbing account of her abduction and her many years as a slave for rich Arabs is as harrowing to read today as when it was written more than 10 years ago. I expect little has changed in the situation she describes with such horror. The first part of the book, about her childhood in Southern Sudan is equally an eye opener, but for a very different reason: She describes a warm and including close-knit and well-developed society with strong family values, and a great sense of humour and joy. Still, one of the most horrific scenes takes place before her abduction, as she is circumcised the traditional way as a young girl. This vile practice is as abhorrent as the slave trade. The book is co-written by film maker and journalist Damien Lewis, a true story teller.

Le tre parti di questo bel romanzo-verità autobiografico scandiscono le “tre vite” che nei suoi soli 22 anni la protagonista ha attraversato: l’infanzia nel villaggio nuba; la schiavitù nelle due capitali Khartoum e Londra; la libertà, o meglio quello spiraglio di libertà che le si è infine aperto. Quella di Mende (nella sua lingua significa “gazzella”) è la storia di migliaia di bambine e bambini dei paesi del Sud del mondo che vengono rapiti, violentati e schiavizzati fin nel cuore delle nostre civilissime città. Storia essenzialmente al femminile, dove l’identità di genere e la solidarietà emergono solo tra donne schiave - le altre hanno assunto totalmente mentalità e comportamenti tipicamente maschili… La libertà rinascerà dapprima come sogno e speranza, dopo una discesa nella più profonda depressione, quando casualmente qualcuno farà riaffiorare nella ragazza la coscienza della sua identità e della sua dignità personale e culturale.
Romanzo di denuncia spietata, ma raccontato senza spirito di vendetta o rancori, dove traspare sempre quella profondissima forza interiore che viene da un’infanzia non facile ma serena e protetta, nel villaggio sui monti Nuba, dall’assimilazione di una dimensione culturale e sociale che nemmeno le sofferenze più atroci potranno cancellare. In copertina, la foto di Mende in persona.

Een verhaal van een jonge vrouw die ontsnapte uit de hedendaagse slavernij.
Omslag is niet de juiste afbeelding voor dit boek.

What an amazing human story of hardship, endurance and survival. Eye opening! How can such 'slave trade' still be happening today? Lean about tribal customs, village life and the actions of the Mujahidin and slave traders in Sudan. The story told here is one that we may accept in a fiction book which we can put down and know that it did not really happen. The fact that this is an autobiography makes this book painfully sad and cruel. Still, even if you don't feel like this kind story right now, worried that it might depress you, I strongly recommend this as a 'must read'. It makes one realise how lucky we are ('we' being people who have time and resources to read books and post reviews on library thing - we live in such luxury), and how living free and 'without fear' should be savoured by us all.½

Kirjassa kuvaillaan totuutta eikä siinä vääristellä maailmaa. Se koskettaa ja hämmästyttää suorasanaisuudella ja pistää lukijan pohtimaan sitä kuinka moni maailman ihmisistä joutuu kärsimään ihmis oikeuksien puutteesta. Kirja vie lukijan Sudanin heimokylien luota, Sudanin suurkaupungin kautta suoraan euroopan suurimpaan kaupunkiin, jossa Sudanissa varttunut tyttö joutuu pohtimaan elämän arvoja uudelleen unohdettuaan ne vankeudessa. Kirja tuo esille ne tosiasiat että jossain päin maailmaa joutuu ihmiset taisetelemaan vapaudestaan.

Ihmisarvonsa menettäneen tytön tie vapaaksi, vahvaksi naiseksi
Orja kertoo Sudanilaisesta tytöstä nimeltä Mende, joka eli lapsuutensa ensimmäiset kaksitoista vuotta onnellisessa perheyhteisössä Nubavuorilla pienessä heimossa. Kylässä vallitsivat ihmisten välinen tasa-arvo ja rakkaus ja vanhat perinteet ja tavat. Nämä perinteet eivät aina näkyneet lukijan silmin kovin miellyttävinä, kuten esimerkiksi järjestetyt avioliitot ja kirjassa hieman liiankin yksityiskohtaisesti kuvatut nuorten tyttöjen ympärileikkaukset herättivät vääryyden tunteita. Tämän idyllin rikkoivat eräänä yönä hyökänneet säälimättömät arabirosvot, jotka polttivat asutuksen, pahoinpitelivät raa’asti, raiskasivat ja tämän jälkeen surmasivat suurimman osan kyläläisistä ja kaappasivat lapsia orjamarkkinoille myytäviksi. Nuoret tytöt, alta kymmenvuotiaatkin, raiskattiin poikkeuksetta ja vietiin kurjiin leireihin, joissa heidät myytiin eteenpäin. Menden osti orjakseen Rahab-niminen rouva, joka ei antanut hänelle minkäänlaista ihmisarvoa, hän esimerkiksi kutsui Mendeä yebitiksi, joka tarkoittaa sanatarkasti tyttöä, joka ei ansaitse nimeä. Mende kärsi Rahabin talossa seitsemän vuotta orjana, jonka jälkeen Rahab lähetti hänet Lontooseen siskonsa, Sudanin lähetystön attasean vaimon, orjaksi. Lontoossa Mende masentui entisestään ja luopui lähes kokonaan toivosta nähdä perhettään enää koskaan, hän harkitsi jopa itsemurhaa. Mende pääsi maistamaan vapautta hänen emäntänsä ollessa ulkomailla. Pian tämän paluun jälkeen Mende onnistui karkaamaan muutaman muun nuban avustuksella. Hänen pakonsa jälkeen alkoi uuvuttava turvapaikanhakuprosessi, tiedotusvälineiden myllerrys ja uuteen, vapaaseen ja myös pelottavaan elämään totuttelu yhdessä Euroopan suurimmista kaupungeista.
Kirja perustuu siis tositapahtumiin niitä vääristelemättä. Tämä tieto saa aikaan entistä voimakkaampia tunteita kirjaa lukiessa. Havaitsin Orjaa lukiessani pohtivani kuinka tällaista saattaa tapahtua todellisuudessa. Orjuuden ymmärtäisi, mikäli kirja olisi sijoittunut muutaman vuosisadan taakse, mutta kirja sijoittuukin alle kymmenen vuoden päähän. On yleisessä tietoudessa, että orjuus elää yhä Sudanissa. Sudanin hallitus on allekirjoittanut virallisia orjuuden kieltäviä sopimuksia, mutta kuitenkin sulkee silmänsä sen rajojen sisäpuolella tapahtuvasta vapauden riistosta, eikä tee mitään konkreettista orjuuden lopettamiseksi. Tämä on mielestäni aivan uskomatonta, millaiset käsitykset näistä asioista päättävillä ihmisillä oikein on tasa-arvosta ja ihmisoikeuksista ylipäätään? Suunta on oikea, mutta parannettavaa on yhä paljon. Mielestäni oli hienoa, että kirja tuo esille Menden henkilökohtaisen tarinan lisäksi orjuuden tilaa yleisesti. Kirjassa on kerrottu myös muiden tyttöjen samankaltaisia tarinoita, Menden tarina ei siis suinkaan ole ainoa laatuaan, vaan tuhannet ovat joutuneet kokemaan samat tuskat, kuten kirjan kirjoittamisessa auttanut toimittaja Damien Lewis valaisee. Pidin siitä, että kirjan lopussa esitettiin tämänkaltaisia faktoja mm. orjuuden nykytilanteesta, Menden tapauksen saamasta tiedotusvälineiden suuresta huomiosta ja siitä kuinka hankalaa turvapaikan hakeminen saattaa olla.
Mikäli etsii jotakin mukavaa ja kevyttä iltalukemista, niin tämä kirja ei silloin ole oikea valinta. Kirja oli kokonaisuudessaan hyvin vaikuttava teos, se sai pohtimaan monia itsestään selvinä pidettyjä arvoja ja niiden ikään kuin unohdettua tärkeyttä. Lukukokemus oli hyvin koskettava ja hätkähdyttävä. Kirja oli rakenteeltaan hyvä, joka teki siitä helppolukuisen ja mukaansatempaavan. Se oli kirjoitettu taidokkaaksi, mutta miinukseksi sanoisin kirjan sisällön rajaamisen. Menden orjuusvuosina saattoi kulua hyvin pitkiä aikoja, ilman että niistä kerrottiin kirjassa mitään. Ymmärrän ettei kirjasta haluta tehdä liian pitkää, mutta olen myös varma että alistetun tytön varttuessa nuoreksi naiseksi jokaisena vuotena tapahtuu jonkinlaisia muutoksia.
Kirjan arvioksi annan neljä ja puoli tähteä. Suosittelen ehdottomasti lukemaan!
Essi Tervala, 10B½

A powerful, very moving biography.

This book tells the story of Mende Nazer. From her childhood growing up in a Nuba village to the raid on her village, being sold into slavery, her escape from slavery, and finally her struggle seeking asylum in the UK.

This book had me laughing, crying, and cringing, it opened my eyes to the struggles of others, and how the fight to end slavery everywhere is still not over. I recommend this to everyone (teens and older), it was well written and a compelling story that is hard to put down.

When I first took a class called "The Literature of American Slavery", I couldn't believe that slavery existed in America only 140 years ago. After reading a number of narratives describing the horrors of slavery, I was relieved that those horrors no longer existed. ...Boy, did this book prove me WRONG!

No - slavery did not end with the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution! As Mende Nazer has shown, it is very much alive in the Sudan and elsewhere. Her story about her capture and subsequent enslavement is certainly an eye-opener!

In addition to an extremely powerful anti-slavery statement, this book also teaches us so much on an antrhropological, sociological & historical level! The first section of the book, for instance, is a fascinating account of the traditional lifestyle in the Nuba Mountains. Included here are descriptions of the close-knit family/community ties, recreational activities such as inter-village wrestling matches, and finally,rituals such as female circumcision.

Next, it provides reader with a highly readable history lesson. It teaches us about the political and social turmoil in the Sudan. It delves into the subjugation of the black Africans by certain Arab communities and reminds us of the genocide inflicted throughout the country.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who really wants to open their eyes to the injustices of the world! Thank you, Ms. Nazer, for telling your story!

Slave tells a life story that I would encourage everyone read about.

Slave was difficult to read in some parts. It was difficult knowing t hat the events happened to someone real, and happened recently.

The book draws you into Nazer's story and you almost instantly want to know more about her and the outcome of the ordeals she faced.

It is difficult knowing that this is a modern tale. We often like to pretend that slavery only took place in the past. However here is one story (among many untold stories) that reminds us that it is not only a problem in the past.

Read this book.

Slavery is, unfortunately, alive and well in today's world. Arab mujahedin conduct regular raids the Nuba mountains of Sudan, and Mende Nazer was about 12 years old when she was captured in one such raid, in 1994. To the shouts of "Allahu Ahkhbar! Allahu Ahkhbar!" ("God is great!") Arab raiders swept through her pastoral and peaceful village, burning, raping, and slaughtering as they sought to capture as many village children as they could.

These children, often raped by their captors, are taken to larger towns and cities and sold as abeed, the Arabic word for slaves. Mende Nazer's story is the account of one abda's (slave) life in captivity.

Mende was a slave for two well-off Arab families; both Muslims, as she is. She points out the irony that both her captors and her "masters" considered themselves devout Muslims at the same time that they beat her, treated her worse than a dog or a cat, and constantly told her she was nothing but a stinking black savage.

Her book paints a picture of a culture that seems based on racial discrimination and hatred -- a culture that does not even give lip service to the notion of equality and fairness. Her very humanity was denied by her mistresses -- her childhood subsumed in an endless round of drudgery. She ate her masters' leftover food, and had to scrape their leftovers into her own special dishes, as she was not allowed to drink or eat from the family's kitchenware -- lest her dirty blackness rub off on it.

Her story, unfortunately, is not unique. What makes Mende's story stand out is that eventually she got up the courage to ask for help, and was fortunate enough to find people willing to help her escape slavery and find asylum in England.

What made this story stand out for me was Mende's account of the several times she passed up opportunities to escape her captivity -- not just because of fear, but because by then she had internalized and accepted her unworthiness to be free. Her account of how she came to believe that it was her destiny to be a slave, of how she came to accept her masters' valuation of her, was not only shocking, but revelatory. From the story of the Israelite slave generation in the Old Testament, who were deliberately condemned to die in the desert because they would always be slaves in their hearts, to the young Mormon girl who was kidnapped by a fanatic couple in Utah a few years ago and seemed to cooperate in her captivity -- the devastating and dehumanizing effects of slavery span eras and cultures.

This is a must-read book for those who naively think that all cultures share a basic belief in fairness, equity, and compassion towards others.

The extraordinary story of a young Sudanese girl sold into slavery and how she survived a lost childhood and finally escaped to freedom. Mende Nazer grew up in the remote Nuba Mountains of Sudan. Her happy childhood was cruelly cut short when raiders on horseback swept into her village. The Mujahidin hacked down terrified villagers, raped the women and abducted the children. Twelve-year-old Mende was one of them. Sold to an Arab lady in Khartoum, she was stripped of her name and her freedom. Called 'abid' or 'black slave', Mende was kept prisoner in the house where she had to carry out domestic duties without pay or any days off. Her bed was the floor of the garden shed and family leftovers provided her meals. For seven years she endured this harsh and lonely life without knowing whether her family was alive or dead. In the spring of 2000 Mende was passed on to a relative in London and eventually managed to make contact with other Nuba exiles. British journalist and filmmaker Damien Lewis, helped her escape to freedom. Slave is a fascinating memoir of an African childhood and a moving testimony to a young girl's indomitable spirit in the face of adversity and shattered dreams.