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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
So freaking good! Perhaps the best of 2019, though I have a couple of more I want to read before I cement that claim. Either way, it's Winterson at her finest. Written on the Body is still her absolute best, but this is pretty amazing. She takes intertextuality to a whole new level, weaving it with a thoughtful discussion of the mind/body split (or unification). And she does it all with her typical humor. My only complaint is I wish I'd read it sooner.
DNF. Winterson has some cool ideas but I think she majorly misses the mark here, (mis)using trans identity as a cool trendy metaphor for what she wants to say about transhumanism. If I have to read one more fetishistic description of a trans man's genitals while his lover insists "I'm not gay! I'm not gay!" over and over again I'm gonna claw my own eyes out.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read thos book because of Frankenstein- one of my all time favourite stories.
It's outside my usual comfort zone, so I was already a bit unsure about it. In the end, it wasn't for me. Too many things I didn't like about it - the story was too lit fic for me, I hated the artsy writing style, I disliked the modern day characters (though Mary Shelley and Co was fascinating- loved seeing her writing process!), and did not care about the romance. I hated Ron, and Ry grates on my nerves. Victor gave me the ick too.
Just didn't work for me.
It's outside my usual comfort zone, so I was already a bit unsure about it. In the end, it wasn't for me. Too many things I didn't like about it - the story was too lit fic for me, I hated the artsy writing style, I disliked the modern day characters (though Mary Shelley and Co was fascinating- loved seeing her writing process!), and did not care about the romance. I hated Ron, and Ry grates on my nerves. Victor gave me the ick too.
Just didn't work for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia
Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Grief
Minor: Pregnancy
emotional
slow-paced
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The most impressive thing about this book is that in 300+ pages it's philosophical ideas contradict each other so much that it has nothing to say.
The depiction of Ry could be a case study in how NOT to write a trans man. It uses his transness to parallel the idea of wanting to escape the flesh, it's not much of a love story as it ends in heartbreak and grief. I LOVE tragedy but tragedy only works if I fall in love with the story first.
It's very racially insensitive with how Claire is written and the few scenes that talk about Muslims and China. It fictionalizes real people poorly.
If this was a good book, the ideas in it, the prose style, it could have been excellent. One of its biggest crimes is the missed potential, because I am a trans man who loves weird lit fic and nonlinear stories, I SHOULD be the target audience for this, and I couldn't stand it. I powered through it just so that I could move onto a better book.
The depiction of Ry could be a case study in how NOT to write a trans man. It uses his transness to parallel the idea of wanting to escape the flesh, it's not much of a love story as it ends in heartbreak and grief. I LOVE tragedy but tragedy only works if I fall in love with the story first.
It's very racially insensitive with how Claire is written and the few scenes that talk about Muslims and China. It fictionalizes real people poorly.
If this was a good book, the ideas in it, the prose style, it could have been excellent. One of its biggest crimes is the missed potential, because I am a trans man who loves weird lit fic and nonlinear stories, I SHOULD be the target audience for this, and I couldn't stand it. I powered through it just so that I could move onto a better book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Transphobia
Moderate: Antisemitism
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book is so interesting but also quite unsettling. It was not something I've ever read before and I love the way the storylines were connected. The description concerning biology and artificial intelligence were not always easy to get through or wrap my head around, but it was mostly just a remarkable story with very interesting characters. It was intense. But in a good way.
DNF at 60% which I’m so sad about because I was really excited about this book, I love Frankenstein and Mary Shelley but I was just bored here.
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Medical trauma