''Girl'' is a 2019 novel by Irish author Edna O'Brien. The book's plot is inspired by the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, and is narrated by a fictional victim, Maryam.

History and composition

O'Brien first conceived of the novel after reading about a girl kidnapped by

Boko Haram Boko Haram, officially known as ''Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād'' ( ar, جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit=Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad), is an Islamic terrorist organization ...

in a magazine at a doctor's office. O'Brien does not type her books, and as with others wrote ''Girl'' on loose paper, periodically dictating pages to a typist.

Reception

Writing for '' The Guardian'', Alex Clark praised the novel, saying: "Everything that O’Brien does memorably throughout her novels, she does here." According to literary review aggregator Book Marks, the novel received mostly positive reviews.

References

2019 Irish novels Novels by Edna O'Brien Novels set in Nigeria Novels about terrorism Boko Haram Faber and Faber books {{2010s-poli-novel-stub