Reviews

The House that Groaned by Karrie Fransman

Only show reviews with written explanations

willow_axolotl376's review

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4.0

Very odd but funny :)

isotobel's review

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dark funny slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.5

There's some fucked up shit in here

What a weird and wonderful book!!!

The House that Groaned is a refreshing, and often, grotesque commentary on society and the strange beings who inhabit it. We follow a woman whose unhealthy relationship with food consumes her life, a man who is attracted to diseased and deformed women, a man who longs for a relationship with someone real as opposed to the models whose photos he retouches, a new female lodger who we learn isn't quite what she seems and an elderly woman who blends in with her surroundings.

Most of these characters typify social norms; for example, there is a lot of emphasis on appearance and image in contemporary society, and in order to achieve the 'desired' look, most people resort to manipulating their eating habits. Janet is a formerly larger female who denies herself treats in order to remain thin. We can see that she isn't happy, and her continual calorie counting takes over her life becoming a borderline obsession. Fransman contrasts her with Marion who is a larger woman and proud of the excesses she indulges in. We see that Janet and Marion are two opposite ends of the scale - neither one of them is happy deep down, and we come to learn that their upbringing influenced the people they have become.

Fransman cleverly addresses the Nature vs Nurture debate in her book and asks the question: are we who we are because of genetics or are we products of our environments? I think in the case of The House that Groaned, our environments are pivotal factors which shape and mould us into the adults we become.

And then there is Brian who is attracted to women of all shapes and sizes with diseases/disfigurements. His back story is a little more opaque, although we come to learn that as a child he was diagnosed with Meningococcal meningitis. What I believe Fransman is trying to emphasise is the understanding one diseased person has for another, and how they have an affinity through their diseases, almost like a linchpin connecting them together.

Matt is the guy who retouches models' photographs and who continually strives for perfection; perfection in his work, in the models themselves and in the world around him. He meets Barbara, the newest resident, and immediately takes a shine to her - she is attractive, in proportion and perfectly sculpted. We later learn that Barbara wasn't born a female, she was actually a boy named Peter, and in her own endeavour to achieve perfection and be accepted/wanted by society, changed gender resulting in a sculpted body, a sculpted body lusted after by Matt.

And finally we meet Demi Durbach, a lady who has lived within the confines of her apartment for so long that she literally blends in with her furnishings. This is a very real and prevalent topic affecting mostly elderly people who feel that they cannot go out in society because society has either changed too much for them and they no longer recognise the society they once was a part of, or they feel ostracised/a burden to society. Despite this character being a background one (no pun intended) it was quite possibly the story which affected and moved me the most - a melancholic story of an elderly woman trying to reintegrate herself back in society.

The story ends rather grotesquely, a lot of people die in horrific ways or end up in unpleasant situations, but for me there is an honesty and a justness to the book - most of these residents are too wrapped up in their own sins to notice the wider world hence why their obsessions become their own undoing.

And of course, let's not forget about the street where they all live - Rottin Road. I think the name speaks for itself; some of them are rotting from the outside in, while others are rotting from the inside out, and a few are just plain rotten.

The illustrations are perfect, using a minimal and subdued colour scheme to encapsulate the fact that actions speak louder than words. Fransman focuses on the behaviour of the characters within a compact space and by using natural colours, does not dilute or impair the honesty and grittiness of her portrayal of real life.

This book is about a handful of flawed people, or if you prefer, misfits, whose unhealthy and unnatural obsessions make The House that Groaned a compelling, unusual and utterly memorable book. If you want to read something different, thought-provoking and ferociously honest, then this book is definitely for you!

j_elphaba's review

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2.0

Facto: quando mais penso neste livro menos consigo decidir-me se gostei ou não do que li.
Se por um lado considero as temáticas interessantes, a verdade é que diversidade de personagens não me atraiu e, claramente, a excentricidade da arte não me agradou.

“The House That Groaned” conta-nos a história abreviada dos seis inquilinos que vivem no antigo edifício 149 da Rotin Road, fala-nos das suas manias e estigmas, de traumas que têm por base estereótipos sociais.

Este é um livro que faz duras críticas aos escravos da beleza, aos que sofrem por não corresponder aos padrões com que somos diariamente bombardeados. Ao longo da obra somos arrastados para o desequilíbrio emocional que esta realidade pode provocar em muitos de nós e que nos faz esquecer facilmente o que nos faz felizes.

Pessoalmente, só não gostei mesmo da arte, o próprio espectro de cores deixou-me triste e acredito que era essa a intensão da autora.

Dito isto, não é que me arrependa de ter comprado e lido este livro, mas acho que esperava algo diferente, algo que me conquistasse. O que senti acabou por ser uma grande inquietação por esta ainda ser uma problemática tão atual e recorrente, mais um monstro que muitos de nós escondem no roupeiro e que permitem que afete quem somos no dia a dia.

Conheciam este livro?