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halflingnana's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Alcoholism, Sexual content, Miscarriage, Drug abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, Sexual violence, Drug use, Death of parent, Addiction, and Abortion
tmathews0330's review against another edition
5.0
I've never read another book like this. Lidia's lyricism is absolutely perfect. I wasn't gripped, through most of the story, by needing to know what happened next, but was perfectly content to drift from her present moment to present moment immersed in the beauty of her language.
karamajka's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
sabfab's review against another edition
4.0
A really good memoir by maybe the worst person you’ve ever met
lizawall's review against another edition
4.0
The whole 24 hours or so that I was reading this book I was simultaneously about to cry, and kind of turned on, and thinking about all the people I wanted to lend it to, immediately. Amazing. But, ok, in the interests of patriarchy-smashing I wish she had broken down that "I got my intellect from my father" line more. Like, she fought it, but I felt like it kept limping along insidiously. Still, that is a maybe kind of piddling criticism for a book that is so mesmerizing.
stine_0's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
drjacvick's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, and Child death
bmusselman3's review against another edition
3.0
CW: trauma, stillbirth, incest, sexual violence, drug-use, ableism
I read this novel after Roxane Gay mentioned it as a part of the curriculum for her writing trauma class. It was a tough read. My head and my heart broke open, and it took me a while to finish.
What struck me most were moments where the author discussed the difficulty of forgiving a parent, especially when that relationship is rooted in trauma. I appreciated the water/swimming symbolism and how it was woven throughout each essay. One of my favorite elements of the novel was the authors’ ability to write events as she feels them; her descriptions are not wrapped in a neat bow as she has no problem sharing her story in a raw, undisguised way.
Some critiques of mine are the outdated and ableist language/verbiage. There were moments in the novel that were captivating, and other moments that were dull—attempting to seem artistic but instead felt like unedited writing. Overall I recommend, but the content is dark, which is important to know before you pick it up. It does serve as an interesting read to bring to any discussions around writing trauma at the risk of re-traumatizing yourself or your readers. I’m not sure how to answer this question just yet.
I read this novel after Roxane Gay mentioned it as a part of the curriculum for her writing trauma class. It was a tough read. My head and my heart broke open, and it took me a while to finish.
What struck me most were moments where the author discussed the difficulty of forgiving a parent, especially when that relationship is rooted in trauma. I appreciated the water/swimming symbolism and how it was woven throughout each essay. One of my favorite elements of the novel was the authors’ ability to write events as she feels them; her descriptions are not wrapped in a neat bow as she has no problem sharing her story in a raw, undisguised way.
Some critiques of mine are the outdated and ableist language/verbiage. There were moments in the novel that were captivating, and other moments that were dull—attempting to seem artistic but instead felt like unedited writing. Overall I recommend, but the content is dark, which is important to know before you pick it up. It does serve as an interesting read to bring to any discussions around writing trauma at the risk of re-traumatizing yourself or your readers. I’m not sure how to answer this question just yet.