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jackiejackiejackiee's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
4.5
Such an interesting piece of literature. This isn’t written like a “true” memoir which can be confusing at times, but I think that reflects the author’s experience with domestic abuse. I appreciate how she wove in the very real issue of domestic violence in the lesbian community. I only gave it 4.5 stars since the formatting was a little wonky for my taste but otherwise highly recommend this book to others.
mdelao630's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
4.5
excavatinglizard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
karli_bee's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.5
onamoonbeam's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
5.0
oh! so that's why this author's famous! moment. read a few excerpts of this for a creative writing class and loved them months ago, finally got around to reading the whole thing. the mastery machado has over language is. absurd. somehow lots of colloquial language to illustrate swathes of emotion and history that will be rattling around in my mind for who knows how long. she also likes the word eponymous, which i will now actually remember the definition of.
notable bits
notable bits
- as a trope lover, the fact the memoir is formatted like this at all is already fantastic, not to mention. literally everything else
- the three deja vu chapters are marked in my book, and i flipped between them, reading their corresponding sentences in order in awe of oh. everything in this book is put together with intention, and this is just a small piece of it.
- the choose your own adventure part with the
(multiple!!) pages that say smth like 'you should not be on this page, there was no way to get to it with the choices provided. you wanted to get out/you can't get out, this already happened/were you looking for a way out' ARE SO GOOD i love when authors use their mediums to the fullest because in what other format could that exist? it reminded me of some pieces of interactive fiction, where choice being given and then taken away, or pointing out the illusion of choice, is more impactful than starting out with no choice to begin with. -
the use of footnotes in reference to folklore and foreshadowing is *chef's kiss* both opposite and adjacent to the princess bride to me. some of them, esp the one of 'mother killing her child' i gasped at -
pointing out that the language we use to describe abuse is so trite that horrible experiences seem banal, then pointing out a specific experience -
magical realism almost? of her experiences after the breakup, shrinking and drowning in tears and finding solace in animals -
"We deserve to have our wrongdoing represented as much as our heroism, because when we refuse wrongdoing as a possibility for a group of people, we refuse their humanity" AAAGH -
explicit separation of "you" and "i" in one chapter that continues for the rest of the book, works to 1. separate her experiences at the time of the relationship and at other points in her life 2. a marker of her growth 3. everything becomes deeply personal to the reader. you are running/dreaming/hiding. do you understand, now? -
"Part of the problem was, as a weird fat girl, you felt lucky." the elementary school me is pounding the floor of my heart, ie. when I read that I gripped the book a little tighter - HOUSE AND SPACE METAPHORS
something about this is peak english major to me, and i mean that as a compliment. guess i gotta go read her body and other parties now
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
jayleighdeidre's review against another edition
Okay book, did not enjoy the amount of 2nd person and honestly made me deeply uncomfortable
mtstellens's review against another edition
5.0
I am not really a big fan of memoirs, but I really loved the way that this was written. It is discombobulating and that perfectly represents how it feels to deal with abuse. There is nothing that isn't experimented with from chapter headings to adding historical research, much like her short stories. Though heartbreaking, it is important to talk about abuse in same sex relationships, and this is a really unique look at a firsthand account of that.
lilasky's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.0