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Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
The book actively tries make you confused and lost. The narrator is unreliable, the thing being reviewed possibly doesn't exist (even in the fiction of the story,) and the experimental tyle layout often leaves you guessing where you ought to be reading next. This is by design.
In spite of that, I found it well worth the read. I'm sure there areittle Easter eggs I didn't catch in my first read, I'm may pick it up again at another time.
I don't know that it was entirely successful in doing what it set out to do (or if that could even be possible, bassed on the story within,) but I think that the attempt was worth it in and of itself, which also makes the read worth it.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Dementia, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Alcohol
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, Gun violence
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexual content, Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment
Minor: Car accident
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Drug abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Car accident
Minor: Ableism, Cancer, Fatphobia, Excrement
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Of all the things it attempted, I found the slow burn horror story the most interesting. It was seriously unsettling until it became tedious. And in that horror story, I thought the character of the regular-guy brother Tom was well drawn.
I feel like Jeff Vandermeer's Annihilation trilogy owes a lot to this book, as does the show Lost. It shares some DNA with Blair Witch Project, too. And it owes more than a little to Infinite Jest, what with the footnotes as well as the "what's real and not," and "what is influencing what"?
The horror story, and this book, go on so long that I stopped caring. The women characters are most often treated as sex objects. The character of Karen is slut shamed, objectified, and belittled for her mental health issues and for not wanting her husband to go into the weird part of the house. But he keeps going back beyond reason. Justice for Karen!
I read to the end only because someone I care about asked me to read this book. If not for that, I would have given up long before. It is too much work to read given that none of the elements engaged me. I saw the "aha" it manufactured, and I wasn't impressed.
My advice is if you're going to read it, just focus on the house story and Johnny's story. Skip the footnotes and many of the weird typographical flourishes. The reason most people find it profound is for the relation between the two stories.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Dysphoria