Girls of Paper and Fire
The first thoughts that came to me for Girls of Paper and Fire were intrigue about the book’s position on the New York Times Bestseller’s List, fascination with the author’s bio and last name-Ngan, and disgust with the splash of James Patterson’s name splayed across the top of the front cover.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand the appeal of using Patterson’s name to sell your book, but I have now seen this so many times and for so many novels that I think he’s lost almost all credibility.
Thankfully the aesthetically pleasing cover with its hints of gold and the author herself (what a cute bio) was enough of a draw to not dissuade me from putting anything and everything down with Patterson’s name on it.
Now, the book itself was really really enjoyable. I got drawn in pretty immediately and it’s a tantalizing amalgamation of fantasy, Chinese and Malaysian historical influences, forbidden romance, and the strength of character and gender.
The plot itself is not overtly interesting, it’s definitely been done time and time before, but the way in which Ngan decides to tell the story-through the eyes of a fierce young woman who is all about choices and strength-is a twist that was more than needed in YA literature.
The story revolves around a young girl who is forcibly taken from her home and given to the palace as a courtesan of the Demon King who rules over Ikhara. The precise title given to the main character, Lei, is Paper Girl.
In this world of Ikhara, there lives a system of castes, where the Steel cast-Half demon and half human mixed with some sort of animal, like foxes, bulls, lion, etc, are at the top of the food chain in terms of strength, reputation, and livelihood.
Next in line are what Ngan calls Moon Castes, they’re lower than pure Steel castes but still have some sort of animal feature or influence, like a dog’s ears or the feline eyes of a jauguar. At the very bottom, considered weak and useless and mundane to the extreme, are the paper castes, easily torn apart and rendered unusable.
But what like Ngan likes to state about paper is that it can burn.
There are many messages blended into this story that I believe Ngan pulls off relatively well. As Lei, our protagonist, starts to adjust to court life, schooling, beauty standards, meeting the other girls, learning about politics and history, concepts like sexuality, consent, loss, and purpose all start to arise.
The main job of a Paper Girl exists to please the king, mainly in the way of sex and sexual favors. Lei, a girl of seventeen taken forcibly from her home, does not want or feel any kind of desire for such a man, especially since it is revealed early on that he is the one responsible for the raid on her village seven years previously and the dreadful disappearance of her mother that most likened ended with her death.
We watch with baited breath as Lei begrudgingly makes friends and finds a new home, as she learns how to fight, dance, and pour sake, we watch as she refuses to give the king what he wants-her- and is punished severely for trying to run away.
Lei ends up falling for a fellow paper girl-cue the forbidden romance sequence-and while I found their relationship to be a bit cliched in terms of how quickly they fell for each other and the way in which it happened, the fact that this is a prominent YA novel with a lesbian couple and Chinese-Malaysian background is truly astounding.
The ending of the book leaves off with a satisfying bang and a great pit in your stomach that makes you want to the read the sequel immediately, be damned if it’s completed or not, but it was the author’s note that truly stuck with me.
Nhan discusses how growing up multiethnic she always craved for more books to be more representative of other girls like her-of varied races and ethnicities, with different religious and sexual backgrounds, how important it was to a young girl to see herself reflected in the media she read and watched and loved.
She also discussed how crucial Girls was to her as an individual and how close it lies to her heart in terms of her own personal experience with sexual assault along with other victims of sexual assault. She assures that even though her novel carries dark themes, the main purpose is to give a ray of hope, that even if you have been hurt, you can thrive and live and be happy because of your own personal strength and the strength of friends and family.
Overall, I found this book to be magical. I loved the fantastical elements of the shamans and the different castes, the creative multi-layered world of Ikara, the romance between Lei and Wren, the message of female empowerment, of choices and willpower in situations where you seem weak and powerless and alone.
This book has so many good messages and while it’s not perfect, it’s a great way to feel empowered yourself and to understand that there are always things you can do and choices to make to make your life meaningful.
Recommendation: “She didn’t want an easy life. She wanted a meaningful one.” This just really says it all doesn’t it?
Score:9/10
