Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - Frankissstein

Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Frankissstein by Jeanette Winterson

27 reviews

kshertz's review

challenging 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

3.5

I think that this title for this book is pretty misleading because it really feels like the title is trying to lend it self to like a romantic comedy. However, this is a very deep intense book looking at artificial intelligence, Frankenstein, and what it means to be a human. I was a little uncomfortable with the fact that they had a trans person in the book and they were comparing that with artificial intelligence and built humans that are brought back to life. It made it feel like a trans person is comparable to different pieces of life that were not necessarily human and I did not like that aspect. I don’t think that was the author’s intention at all. It just made me feel like maybe they were biting off more than needed to be in the novel and in doing that kind of equated trans with not normal so I was not liking that. But there was a lot of interesting themes and connections in the book that really made me think.

Content Warnings

hannahbailey's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

This is an interesting exploration of what our future could look like: bionic humans, AI sex robots and eternal life (the brain as data). I loved how Winterson connects these ideas to Mary Shelley's ideas of human life and reanimation after death. This connection between the past and present shows how prevalent this idea of eternal life and making the impossible possible has always been. Shelley's perspective was engaging to read and reminded me how much I love her novel Frankenstein (perhaps more praise should be given to Shelley here than Winterson lol). The modern POV follows a non-binary trans person (Ry) and their relationship with Victor Stein, a scientist (of sorts) trying to bring his mate's beheaded head back to life. This was (perhaps purposefully) less engaging, as Ry often lacks agency amongst the people around them who shove their opinions of gender and identity down their throat.

I've read several reviews of this novel in which people describe Winterson as transphobic. In this novel specifically, I don't see the ignorant views of the characters as a reflection of her own views. However, there is very crude language used throughout which focuses on the anatomy of the characters. I don't feel that this narrative focus on bodily features has aged well (I know this book is only 3 years old but even then) in response to present ideas of gender, sex and identity. The characters around Ry are consistently transphobic, denying their identity, misgendering them and deadnaming them. This is a book to read if you're interested in the future of AI and human relationships, but not if you're looking for a story with good trans rep. Had this book not featured Frankenstein but a different cautionary tale, such as Brave New World, I probably would've hated it.

Alternative reads with trans rep/trans authors:

https://bookriot.com/best-trans-fantasy-books/
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/126482.Novels_by_Trans_Authors_with_Trans_Protagonists

Jeanette Winterson//transphobia:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-lgbt-books/no-rush-to-change-gender-uk-writer-joins-trans-debate-idUSKCN1T028R

Non-exhaustive list of TW: sexual assault, transphobia, homophobia, child death, miscarriage, misogyny, body horror/gore

Content Warnings

mobygrapes's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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? It's complicated

3.25

Content Warnings

deezy's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious reflective sad medium-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

2.0

Content Warnings

pages_with_a_preoccupied_prin's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

I really enjoyed this book and found the concept really clever. I loved the interlinking stories that cross time and found the themes in this book really compelling. It was a thought-provoking, gorgeously written book that I would highly recommend.

Content Warnings

alexerllent's review

Go to review page

Content Warnings

therainbowshelf's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

💭 My thoughts 💭: This wasn't the right book for me, but it is a good book. I didn't enjoy the ongoing existential conversations about what life was, and whether life was still life if you were in a new body. I also didn't appreciate the sex robot guy (but I think that's what the author was going for). I really liked the dual timeline looking back at Marry Shelley as she conceptualizes Frankenstein, though!

📚 The gist 📚: Along a dual-timeline, Mary Shelley dreams up a monster novel in the 1810s, and a man two hundred years later ponders over what constitutes life and death.

📒Representation📒: Ftm mc, mlm mc, cherecter with a more flexible sexuality

💕 For readers looking for 💕: the existential questions of what constitutes life dredged up by Frankenstein, books about books (kind of), and characters becoming real

Content Warnings

radfordmanor's review

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

anth's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Almost 4 stars because this book really fascinated me and made me think a lot, because I found Ry and Victor two interesting and intense characters and I felt very invested in them and their relationship.
However, I'm not sure I completely get where the story went. I think I do, but the doubt leaves me hanging. Maybe that's the point. I don't know what was the point, but maybe it was leaving me here to think about what the point was.

Content Warnings

mryshells's review

Go to review page

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

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

1.0

Huge TW for transphobia towards characters in the book but also in the clearly problematic views the author must hold that come through in the writing.

Content Warnings

More...