Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

69 reviews

frogreads_'s review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

This book is lovingly and hauntingly well-written. Even though i didn't understand the analogies in some stories (and looked up each story after) i adored the way each one was written. I am left both hollow and full; the way a truly good book does. 

The only reason this is not marked higher is because of my difficulty of understanding. Some of these stories are red hot wires of pain and trauma and then they're gone- and im left grasping to find the purpose of the story itself. I look forward to the day the author releases a longform story and we are allowed to grow, blossom, and die with the main characters. 

Her characters are deep from the start and complicated like a dream you barely remember. All of these stories are feminist, predominantly queer, and have an edge of mental health and i appreciate them for that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Sexual content

Moderate: Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, and Mental illness

Minor: Vomit and Pregnancy

In my opinion some of these stories read like you are going through a dissociative fugue. You jump around and know as much as the main character does to the point where you are affected too-left feeling lost and confused, but taken all the same. This is very much in the stories The Resident and Mothers. Could be triggering for those who experience dissociation and/or derealization.

gabbybobadilla's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

• 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Rape, Sexual content, Vomit, Sexual violence, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders

honeyvoiced's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

favorites: especially heinous and real women have bodies

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, and Sexual content

Moderate: Rape, Alcohol, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Vomit

Minor: Homophobia

valsometimesreads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

The writing is overall very good and machado is a talented author. I found the short stories to be very hit or miss. I especially loved “The Husband Stitch,” which is the first in the collection. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Domestic abuse, Vomit, and Sexual violence

helhas3letters's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Kidnapping, Sexism, Child abuse, Child death, and Death

Minor: Animal death, Colonisation, Fatphobia, Medical content, Murder, Sexual assault, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Blood, Body horror, Dysphoria, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Alcohol, and Homophobia

bashsbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Her Body And Other Parties taps into the horror of being seen as a woman - and emphasizes it with a fine and careful touch of the surreal. Thought-provoking and cerebral, Machado doesn't hold back on displaying the female body in all its gory glory. It is unsettling and horrifying, but in a very real and relatable way - there are no jumpscares here, only uncomfortable truths. Like all short story collections, I liked some of the stories more than others (I enjoyed "Inventory" and "Especially Heinous" the most) though they are all worth a read, as every story in this collection churned in my mind for days after reading it. I can't wait to see what Machado writes next.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Body horror, Alcohol, Animal death, Vomit, Death, Fatphobia, Pregnancy, Violence, Eating disorder, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Domestic abuse, Body shaming, Pandemic/Epidemic, Rape, and Sexual harassment

-Explicit description of a flu-like illness. -Explicit description of popping pimple-like welts.

jialianyang's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A haunting book about queer women. They are from different backgrounds, telling their experiences in various ways. It is like stepping into another's mind over and over. This is a book where you must be ok with being sad, confused, desiring, hurting, haunted, lost. The women are not the side characters here, but they are also not always in control. Disorienting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Confinement, Gaslighting, Grief, Lesbophobia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Suicide, Fatphobia, Alcohol, Bullying, and Vomit

Moderate: Colonisation, Chronic illness, Car accident, Toxic friendship, Rape, and Toxic relationship

mirnda's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Terminal illness, Vomit, and Mental illness

Minor: Fatphobia, Gore, Medical content, Body shaming, Gaslighting, Lesbophobia, and Sexual assault

moreadsnrambles's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, and Medical content

Moderate: Sexual content and Sexual assault

ilovepastaandpizza's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

mir fehlen die worte aber ich versuche mal ein paar aufzukratzen.
insgesamt fand ich die meisten geschichten gut. es ist sehr viel up-to-interpretation und mysteriös, weshalb ich für manche interpretations ansätze googeln musste.
es geht sehr viel um sexualität und körperlichkeit, und besonders um deren verknüpfung zur psyche. ich muss sagen, beim lesen habe ich oft echten ekel, tiefe scham, verzweiflung und traurigkeit gespürt, und manchmal auch einfach angst, frustration oder plain anger. manchmal auch ein punch in the face oder ich musste laut gaspen. die geschichten sind genial geschrieben.
ah und es ist sehr queer-normalising which was nice.
i saw someone make a ranking so i will do that too.

Stories Ranked

1. Real Women Have Bodies
2. Eight Bites
3. The Husband Stitch
4. Inventory
5. Difficult at Parties
6. The Resident
7. Especially Heinous

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Misogyny, Eating disorder, Self harm, Sexism, Pandemic/Epidemic, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Fatphobia

Minor: Sexual assault