Author: Michelle Bowdler
Publication Date: Jul. 28, 2020
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Format: Kindle Book
Started: Nov. 1, 2020
Finished: Nov. 7, 2020
TW: Rape and violence
By the title of this book, one would wonder what was going through the author's mind when she chose it. Then, you take the time to realize that she is actually questioning whether rape is actually treated as a crime by the police department. Bowdler takes us through her traumatic rape and the aftermath including the disregard of the head investigator and the loss of her rape kit.
As a survivor of assault, I was afraid that Michelle's story would be triggering and I would be unable to finish the book but I found the manner in which she told her story to make sense and allow for moments of rest between moments of concern. Michelle's telling of her story broke my heart and made me angry. She has spent so much of her life in the public health arena and sitting on committees where she had to rehash her experience knowing that no one was ever held responsible.
Allowing yourself to recover from the trauma of a sexual assault, especially one as violent as Michelle's, is the ultimate form of self-love and should be commended at all turns.