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4.3 AVERAGE
4.3 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
I relate to a lot of this in ways that are uncomfortable to realize
Hunger
Just read the book. It's painful, uncomfortable, thought provoking and a reminder that we can all heal. I'm glad I finally read it.
Just read the book. It's painful, uncomfortable, thought provoking and a reminder that we can all heal. I'm glad I finally read it.
This book was a masterclass on vulnerability, and it’s difficult to write a review without laying out many of my own personal vulnerabilities. I found Roxane’s balance of raw, personal narrative and sharp, needed social commentary on what it means to live in this world as “a woman of size” to be well-orchestrated and poignant, and I found myself experiencing a broad range of emotions when reading. It was a beautiful, painful read… one that provided both comfort and feelings of being seen/heard AND incited anger and frustration about how large bodies are (mis)treated in this world. Thank you, Roxane, for sharing your story.
You can feel this author's pain and the immense struggle she has had accepting and forgiving herself. Powerful and hard to read at times, but gave me a glimpse of something I have never had to deal with, and an issue I realize I really need to have more empathy for, obesity.
So Grateful
This wonder of a book is painful, powerful, thought-provoking, and absolutely necessary. The writing flows elegantly yet Gay never avoids the deep ugliness of so much damage.
This wonder of a book is painful, powerful, thought-provoking, and absolutely necessary. The writing flows elegantly yet Gay never avoids the deep ugliness of so much damage.
Each chapter of this brutally honest memoir is only a few pages long, inviting the reader to dip into a few chapters at a time, and then take a much needed break from the grief, guilt, shame and pain that Roxane Gay shares about her life.
It is an unforgettable memoir.
It is an unforgettable memoir.
“I am stronger than I am broken.”
I am torn about this book. That is to say, it is an important piece, written by a veteran novelist about topics and events that would have otherwise been thought of as unspeakable. Hunger is a collection of short essays about the author's life; mainly the terrible event that has shaped Gay's body, and how she navigates the world after the trauma she endured. It is a raw account of a woman fighting for her place in a world that wants nothing to do with her. It is unapologetic. It is powerful.
However. However. There was something missing. Despite the universality of the themes and the courage it must have taken to write something this personal, I couldn't bring myself to be as invested as I should have been. The writing felt very much like it was on a loop, replaying the same ideas over and over again but in different arrangements. This was my first venture into memoirs, and so I wasn't sure what to expect. Eye-opening truths? A plethora of personal experiences that I may or may not relate to? The telling of a chronicle of events that played out in someone else's life? All of that was in Hunger , but the style and writing overshadowed so much of what would have made this book resonate with me.
I still think this is a good book. There are themes, such as the weight of society's expectations on women's bodies, the shame of not being the person that you want and need to be, and the pain of distancing yourself from the ones who love you most for fear that they won't accept you as you are. These are things that I can empathize with. These are the things that will touch a great many people, and for that, Hunger has achieved something that is worth being noted.
I am torn about this book. That is to say, it is an important piece, written by a veteran novelist about topics and events that would have otherwise been thought of as unspeakable. Hunger is a collection of short essays about the author's life; mainly the terrible event that has shaped Gay's body, and how she navigates the world after the trauma she endured. It is a raw account of a woman fighting for her place in a world that wants nothing to do with her. It is unapologetic. It is powerful.
However. However. There was something missing. Despite the universality of the themes and the courage it must have taken to write something this personal, I couldn't bring myself to be as invested as I should have been. The writing felt very much like it was on a loop, replaying the same ideas over and over again but in different arrangements. This was my first venture into memoirs, and so I wasn't sure what to expect. Eye-opening truths? A plethora of personal experiences that I may or may not relate to? The telling of a chronicle of events that played out in someone else's life? All of that was in Hunger , but the style and writing overshadowed so much of what would have made this book resonate with me.
I still think this is a good book. There are themes, such as the weight of society's expectations on women's bodies, the shame of not being the person that you want and need to be, and the pain of distancing yourself from the ones who love you most for fear that they won't accept you as you are. These are things that I can empathize with. These are the things that will touch a great many people, and for that, Hunger has achieved something that is worth being noted.
This was difficult to read.
To add, I feel some of this, a lot, but because of outward perception I know that I cannot really understand. So much of our issues with weight are how society interacts with our bodies, and I do not have that experience.
To add, I feel some of this, a lot, but because of outward perception I know that I cannot really understand. So much of our issues with weight are how society interacts with our bodies, and I do not have that experience.