Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Dreaming of You

Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

Dreaming of You by Melissa Lozada-Oliva

5 reviews

megansoetaert's review

emotional mysterious medium-paced

4.25

i really liked this overall, despite not being a huge verse person. i loved the author’s style & the structure of the book, both felt unique and impactful! it was creepy and eerie, but i was down for that.

major themes: loneliness, womanhood, celebrity/pop culture & representation

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plumdustsuns's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Melissa’s definitely such a talented writer. There are lines that made my jaw fall open. I think my own problem was that I’m not entirely used to informal and formal poetry mixed together like this, the form.

The plot of the novel also in the middle threw me off a bit. Because it wasn’t as ‘Selena central’ as I thought it could have been. Which I guess is the point. There are also parts with the You turning into a fish and all of that, that felt out of place for me. I almost wish it was one theme or the other (love and identity) as sometimes they didn’t mesh too well or felt out of place with one another (mostly some You bits). Some parts fell a bit short in comparison to the highs of the book.

I lost the momentum by here and it seemed I wasn’t as excited to finish it as I was to start it.
But it was an enjoyable and unique read, nonetheless.

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toffishay's review

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emotional funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I really connect with Melissa's voice. This is funny and a little morbid and dives more into the author and the reader than anything else; like all poetry it reveals the most about you.

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anniefwrites's review

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dark funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

In other books, I'd see asking questions like "Wait, who is this character?" or "Where are we?" or "What is actually happening right now?" as flaws in the clarity of the language. But in this case, as the title implies, Lozada-Oliva has set us up to dream, to float in that liminal space between reality and imagined narrative, between seeing and being seen. So I just went along with the confusion I sometimes felt, and that release of control over knowing everything for certain was really freeing. I also think that the core scenes were clear enough to create really strong images and moments. It made me think about the way that violence and love can sometimes seem like the same thing because they're both rooted in wanting. And Book-Melissa's journey from constantly wanting to be watched and wanting to be her own adored pop star to living in the unwatched, solitary, reality of existing rather than performing left me with a lot to mull over. I love the way Lozada-Oliva's voice jumps off the page in it snarky, self-aware humor and images of everyday life's minutiae. A weird book in the best way.

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readinghavoc's review

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adventurous dark funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A fun read in a format unfamiliar to me, I really enjoyed this and would recommend it to someone trying to get more interested in poetry who doesn't vibe with the poetry they read in school.

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