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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
"My appetite at six, at nine, at twelve, at thirty, for stories like that were as boundless as my appetite for roast chicken skin; any fantasy that involved doing nothing when faced with important decisions while being praised for my appearance appealed to me. But one must, if one does not spontaneously die, do something when faced with important decisions."
The new book by Daniel Mallory Ortberg (known from gems such as Texts From Jane Eyre) evades any kind of categorization: are these essays? Is it a memoir - or just "memoir-adjacent" as Ortberg writes in the acknowledgements? Partly fiction? If you have been an avid The Toast (RIP) reader than you know (and love) this wild mix of personal confessions and interrogations, pop culture references (Golden Girls anyone) and feminist/queer rewritings of classic material (from ancient Greek and Rome, Bible verses, Arthurian legends), fun lists, and poetry. Something That May Shock and Discredit You takes all these ingredients but organized these around one main theme: Ortberg's transition and thoughts about gender and relationships.
This book is a very enjoyable and diverse in form and tone. And even though there were two or three texts where I felt I missed some layers because I knew the source material less well, I loved the book. Ortberg offers a trans narrative which dives into aspects less prominently discussed (for varied reasons): not feeling like one has "always known", doubts, love between two trans people, religion, shifting relationships to women. All of this - and more, again this book is hard to pin down - invites you to think and feel and also laugh out loud.
The new book by Daniel Mallory Ortberg (known from gems such as Texts From Jane Eyre) evades any kind of categorization: are these essays? Is it a memoir - or just "memoir-adjacent" as Ortberg writes in the acknowledgements? Partly fiction? If you have been an avid The Toast (RIP) reader than you know (and love) this wild mix of personal confessions and interrogations, pop culture references (Golden Girls anyone) and feminist/queer rewritings of classic material (from ancient Greek and Rome, Bible verses, Arthurian legends), fun lists, and poetry. Something That May Shock and Discredit You takes all these ingredients but organized these around one main theme: Ortberg's transition and thoughts about gender and relationships.
This book is a very enjoyable and diverse in form and tone. And even though there were two or three texts where I felt I missed some layers because I knew the source material less well, I loved the book. Ortberg offers a trans narrative which dives into aspects less prominently discussed (for varied reasons): not feeling like one has "always known", doubts, love between two trans people, religion, shifting relationships to women. All of this - and more, again this book is hard to pin down - invites you to think and feel and also laugh out loud.
Many people and outlets whose reviews I generally agree with enjoyed this but I suspect I am simply too aggressively incapable of noticing or understanding many of the literary allusions and techniques at play here.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
emotional
inspiring
emotional
funny
medium-paced
3.5 rounded up. A weird little book in the best of ways.
This book is SO GOOD, y'all - thoughtful and poignant but also devastatingly funny and if you're a fan of Lavery's writing from Slate, ShatnerChatner, etc., you'll know what to expect - literary and biblical references mixed with self-deprecating humor and all the other things that make his writing excellent. 13/10 would read again!
A perfectly written book of essays ranging from interrogations or pop culture and the Bible and an affirmation of a transgender life. Very funny in parts, deeply moving in others.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing