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ambero's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Dysphoria, Suicide attempt, and Mental illness
criticalgayze's review against another edition
5.0
Even more affecting here for the artist and art-inclined among us, Emezi gives a sense of transparency that is often lacking in the business of the arts that can feel so intimidating, especially to historically marginalized creators. To that end, Emezi weaves in a level of knowledge and advice that is reminiscent of such workbook memoirs as You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero and Minority Leader by Stacey Abrams.
This work also bolsters what I have come to find about my own reading life. What seems to leave the greatest impact on me as a reader are works of memoir, auto-, and experimental fiction by Queer creators. Works that Queer the space of writing while being Queer themselves, and works that peel back the exterior and interior process of creation that help me access that space within myself. (Now to take Emezi's advice and start letting that inspire, instead of intimidate!)
Quotes:
I tell him that my search for somewhere to be is really a search for self, and the only self I feel at home with is one that doesn't exist, not anymore, one that's bee taken apart, whipped into dust. (2)
The magician tells me that other people can't do what I do, and maybe I believe him a little, but that's not the point. People can do such spectacular things if you forget to tell them it's impossible. I want them to try. (22)
Illusions are the best things to burn, I think, but some people consider such fires to be threats, and those who start them even worse. (24)
People would read Freshwater and speculate about what my career would have looked like after starting with a book so bold. I would be less of a threat, they wouldn't hesitate to call the book what it was - not the way they do when you're alive and young, Black and pretty and fucking talented, and you don't pretend like you don't know all of this. (30)
I am, at once, the person most bent on my death and the person most successful at keeping me alive; even the devil won't take me. (44)
So, you could just show a terrible thing and let the showing be the strength of it? I thought it was brilliant. (77)
'I stood at the border, stood at the edge, and claimed it as central,' you said, your voice weighted with intent. 'Claimed it as central and let the rest of the world move over to where I was.' (77)
You should see my centers, Ms. Morrison. They're glorious. They pull with the force of a planet and I'm patient; it's only a matter of time. (80)
The rules are clear, no matter the stakes: when anyone fucks with the work, burn them to the ground. (87)
Everything advances, mutates, we are in new worlds constantly (154)
It gets so ugly, this thing of punishing other for prioritizing their well-being over reassuring insecurities. (206)
It's never too late - that's a human lie of time, there is no late, there is mostly now because now is so flexible, I find. You can change a whole life, a whole world, inside of a now. (213)
'You write when you are most fragile, because you're changing from one form to another. These transformations and transmutations that take place - it has to be painful.' (227)
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Medical content, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Medical trauma, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Sexual assault, Racism, Transphobia, Sexual violence, Drug abuse, and Cursing
Minor: Excrement
liaandersson's review against another edition
Graphic: Transphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Medical content, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Medical trauma, Mental illness, Blood, Body horror, and Medical content
Moderate: Child abuse, Drug use, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Dysphoria, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Homophobia, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Infidelity
hogsandwich's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
Moderate: Self harm
dre721's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, and Dysphoria
nicolaaa's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Blood, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, and Violence
Minor: Animal cruelty and Infidelity
ceallaighsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
“I know many people survive, but I also think people glorify resilience a little too much, forgetting that the fragile ones simply die as the world walks on over their bones. There are some things we shouldn’t be boasting about.
“I remember how it felt, and I know it was true. Maybe not in this life or this dimension, but it was true, and I miss it so much.”
“Alone, there’s just me, and I see myself clearly.”
- Freshwater, and everything else by Akwaeke Emezi
- The Icarus Girl, and everything else by Helen Oyeyemi
- The Bone People, and Te Kaihau The Windeater, by Keri Hulme
- Zami, by Audre Lorde
- The Night Before the Day, by Ailo Gaup
- The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, by Mariana Enríquez
- The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson
- The Nesting, by C. J. Cooke
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Rape, Toxic relationship, and Emotional abuse
foreverinastory's review against another edition
5.0
I've had the pleasure of reading both Freshwater and The Death of Vivek Oji so I knew I would be inhaling Emezi's memoir as soon as I could. Dear Senthuran has solidified Emezi as one of my favorite authors of all time. Any time they come out with something new, I will be reading it immediately.
This memoir is not an easy book to read. Emezi has chronic depression and has lived through several suicide attempts. Reading about their struggles and how being an author on tour only exacerbated their depression is something readers and fans almost never see. We see the shiny, polished author who puts their best face forward during the extent of the tour where as many cities as possible are crammed in.
So much of this book is about pain. But it's also about becoming who you are. The thing I related to the most was Emezi's struggles with gender and defining exactly what their gender was. Plus dealing with dysphoria and taking steps to treat it. They also discuss how this impacted their relationship with their mother.
This book took a knife to my soul and it felt like someone finally understood the thoughts in my head I haven't been able to verbalize. Read this book as soon as you can.
CWs: Death, emotional abuse, homophobia, medical content (gender affirming surgeries), misogyny, racism, religious bigotry, sexism, self harm, sexual content, suicidal thoughts, suicide attempts, toxic relationship, transphobia, body horror, mental illness (depression).
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
tinytrashqueen's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Medical content, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Death, Chronic illness, Body horror, Blood, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Ableism, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Bullying, Car accident, Drug use, Misogyny, Outing, Sexism, Transphobia, and Violence