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browngirlreading's review against another edition
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I said that this book was sad, but I meant that in the pathetic way. What I waste of reading time and money.đ
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
kers_tin's review
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Stalking, and Infidelity
Moderate: Classism, Racism, and Domestic abuse
barbarella85's review
challenging
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
ramreadsagain's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This is a book of two halves for me.
On one hand I really liked the format and narration, with the monologue of a thirty-something woman of colour who is obsessed with an older married man she is having a mostly one-sided affair with, as well as being obsessed with the younger, white instagram influencer who the man is having an affair with. She is pathetic and self-destructive yet also apparently very self-aware. The (very short) chapters are a mix of plot/backstory, and mini essays on society, class, race, and misogyny.
It falls down for me though when it comes to the actual substance of the book. The critiques on influencer culture bordered a bit too much on internalised misogyny for my liking, and the thoughts on other issues did feel very surface level. Essentially, not nearly as deep or original as I would expect from a Womenâs Prize nominee.
I just think it could have done more with this, especially when it comes to cognitive dissonance, for example the main character continuing to beg for this man while also knowing she was being strung along and racially fetishised.
On one hand I really liked the format and narration, with the monologue of a thirty-something woman of colour who is obsessed with an older married man she is having a mostly one-sided affair with, as well as being obsessed with the younger, white instagram influencer who the man is having an affair with. She is pathetic and self-destructive yet also apparently very self-aware. The (very short) chapters are a mix of plot/backstory, and mini essays on society, class, race, and misogyny.
It falls down for me though when it comes to the actual substance of the book. The critiques on influencer culture bordered a bit too much on internalised misogyny for my liking, and the thoughts on other issues did feel very surface level. Essentially, not nearly as deep or original as I would expect from a Womenâs Prize nominee.
I just think it could have done more with this, especially when it comes to cognitive dissonance, for example the main character continuing to beg for this man while also knowing she was being strung along and racially fetishised.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Racism and Sexual content
Minor: Stalking
booking_along's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
This could have been great!
it could have been this moving deeply emotional or even funny commentary about basically a large amount of an generation not really knowing what to do, how to fit in, seeing others at a similar age having families or successes, building lives and homes and apparently showing off their happiness on social media while this one person feeling left out, left behind and maybe not abandoned but feeling that way non the less.
this could have been about a woman wanting to be what she could never be -a white women- by obsessing over her and then learning that being yourself is better, or if not a book with a happy ending than just learning just how fake that perfect white woman on social medias life really is.
instead we get a story that just rambles on seemingly endlessly about a very unhappy woman that keeps making the same mistakes -sleeping with an older married man- and expecting a different result from it than being left behind by him over and over again.
we get a woman obsessively stalking a social media person, being jealous and envious about her life but doing nothing about it but feel those things almost constantly.
and in between those things we get small snippets of how unhappy this narrator -unnamed and anonymous like everyone else in this book- with the life she build herself but again doing nothing to chance it even though there is nothing stopping her from at least trying to become someone she might like more or at least build a life she could enjoy more.
i am not sure if this book is trying to be âedgyâ or âcoolâ with the sexual moments and how they are talked about in this book, but they felt utterly forced and as of trying to hard to make something feel normal or realistic in a way that makes it just feel too noticeable and forced because of that.
getting a description about a guys penis and how he feels inside a woman and how she misses, having her think about that while she is rolling around with him (why that entire scene even happens as it did i have no clue!) on grass for no reason other than making that entire scene trying to sexualized a man and a woman touching not really sexually but forcing it to be a sexualizied sceneâŚ.
for me this entire book was a mess.
it didnât do anything that it could have done.
it didnât make the amount of commentary it could have made about all things the book tries to make commentary about.
the writing feels clunky and too forced and trying too hard way to often.
this entire thing about never naming anyone and with that (just guessing here) giving the option for the reader to fill those roles as they want⌠it didnât work. it just made the entire story feel too generic and the characters distant.
clearly this is one of those books that landed on a prize list where i donât understand why they are on there.
and not because i because the book isnât for anyone and written in a way that should never have been published.
but because this book is needs a very specific reader to get honest good ratings and reviews.
putting this book in competition - and thatâs what a prize list basically does!- with other books that appeal to a much wider audience much easier is unfair to this book.
for example i would have picked this book up if it wouldnât have been on the prize list because nothing about it interested me.
but being on the list i expected more from this book than it promised to deliver.
i expected deeper meanings and fantastic writing. i expected social commentary or something meaningful that years from now readers will understand our specific moment in time with thanks to this current contemporary story.
but this book never promised to do that - the listing on a book prize that promised me this is one of the best published books by a female author during this years time did that. without that promise this book could have been an okay read.
but with that explanation this was a disappointing read.
what i am trying to say here is this:
sometimes books like this should be marketed towards a large audience because it might get them publicity that the author deserves for publishing my a book but negative reactions it wouldnât have gotten because itâs not a book that a wider audience will love.
not sure if any of that made sense outside my head.
sadly this wasnât for me.
and i would recommend it to anyone expect if a person asked specifically for a recommendation that would fit this book.
it could have been this moving deeply emotional or even funny commentary about basically a large amount of an generation not really knowing what to do, how to fit in, seeing others at a similar age having families or successes, building lives and homes and apparently showing off their happiness on social media while this one person feeling left out, left behind and maybe not abandoned but feeling that way non the less.
this could have been about a woman wanting to be what she could never be -a white women- by obsessing over her and then learning that being yourself is better, or if not a book with a happy ending than just learning just how fake that perfect white woman on social medias life really is.
instead we get a story that just rambles on seemingly endlessly about a very unhappy woman that keeps making the same mistakes -sleeping with an older married man- and expecting a different result from it than being left behind by him over and over again.
we get a woman obsessively stalking a social media person, being jealous and envious about her life but doing nothing about it but feel those things almost constantly.
and in between those things we get small snippets of how unhappy this narrator -unnamed and anonymous like everyone else in this book- with the life she build herself but again doing nothing to chance it even though there is nothing stopping her from at least trying to become someone she might like more or at least build a life she could enjoy more.
i am not sure if this book is trying to be âedgyâ or âcoolâ with the sexual moments and how they are talked about in this book, but they felt utterly forced and as of trying to hard to make something feel normal or realistic in a way that makes it just feel too noticeable and forced because of that.
getting a description about a guys penis and how he feels inside a woman and how she misses, having her think about that while she is rolling around with him (why that entire scene even happens as it did i have no clue!) on grass for no reason other than making that entire scene trying to sexualized a man and a woman touching not really sexually but forcing it to be a sexualizied sceneâŚ.
for me this entire book was a mess.
it didnât do anything that it could have done.
it didnât make the amount of commentary it could have made about all things the book tries to make commentary about.
the writing feels clunky and too forced and trying too hard way to often.
this entire thing about never naming anyone and with that (just guessing here) giving the option for the reader to fill those roles as they want⌠it didnât work. it just made the entire story feel too generic and the characters distant.
clearly this is one of those books that landed on a prize list where i donât understand why they are on there.
and not because i because the book isnât for anyone and written in a way that should never have been published.
but because this book is needs a very specific reader to get honest good ratings and reviews.
putting this book in competition - and thatâs what a prize list basically does!- with other books that appeal to a much wider audience much easier is unfair to this book.
for example i would have picked this book up if it wouldnât have been on the prize list because nothing about it interested me.
but being on the list i expected more from this book than it promised to deliver.
i expected deeper meanings and fantastic writing. i expected social commentary or something meaningful that years from now readers will understand our specific moment in time with thanks to this current contemporary story.
but this book never promised to do that - the listing on a book prize that promised me this is one of the best published books by a female author during this years time did that. without that promise this book could have been an okay read.
but with that explanation this was a disappointing read.
what i am trying to say here is this:
sometimes books like this should be marketed towards a large audience because it might get them publicity that the author deserves for publishing my a book but negative reactions it wouldnât have gotten because itâs not a book that a wider audience will love.
not sure if any of that made sense outside my head.
sadly this wasnât for me.
and i would recommend it to anyone expect if a person asked specifically for a recommendation that would fit this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
aniglen's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Misogyny and Classism
Minor: Domestic abuse and Emotional abuse
emilyrowanstudio's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
4.75 rounded up - This is a fantastic book and I would love to see it win the Women's Prize (although I don't think it will).
I love books like this. So 2023, so modern, so political, so about social media and internet culture.
I'm a Fan is told in short chapters, many less than a page long. Some are first person narratives where our protagonist loses herself in The Man I Want To Be With and The Woman I Am Obsessed With, some are essays about race, womanhood, manhood, art, and some are a mixture of both.
I can see why this such a marmite book. If you're not a lover of the internet, or intrigued by fame and influencer culture, or fascinated by the way we can so easily be found and traced online, then you won't "get" this. It as an acquired 21st century taste. The protagonist, and three of the other main characters, are never named. They are all horrible and unlikeable people. The impersonality with the lack of names combined with the spewing of dark thoughs and deep desires, the conscious and unconscious will to destroy themselves, the sinister traits of their character - there is much here reminiscent of the MCs in Eliza Clark's Boy Parts and Otessa Moshfegh's My Year of Rest in Relaxation, but I'm A Fan is smarter than them both. The social and political commentary interspersed with the non-linear plotless prose is expertly done.
I'm A Fan is so of the moment yet so one of a kind. This is a near perfect book. I can't wait to see what Sheena Patel does next.
[To add - and this has nothing to do with the book itself and only the reception it has received - I didn't find I'm A Fan as dark as I expected. Unhinged, certainly. The actions of the protagonist make you wince at times, but to be labelled 'dark' I was expecting something more explicitly sinister to happen].
I love books like this. So 2023, so modern, so political, so about social media and internet culture.
I'm a Fan is told in short chapters, many less than a page long. Some are first person narratives where our protagonist loses herself in The Man I Want To Be With and The Woman I Am Obsessed With, some are essays about race, womanhood, manhood, art, and some are a mixture of both.
I can see why this such a marmite book. If you're not a lover of the internet, or intrigued by fame and influencer culture, or fascinated by the way we can so easily be found and traced online, then you won't "get" this. It as an acquired 21st century taste. The protagonist, and three of the other main characters, are never named. They are all horrible and unlikeable people. The impersonality with the lack of names combined with the spewing of dark thoughs and deep desires, the conscious and unconscious will to destroy themselves, the sinister traits of their character - there is much here reminiscent of the MCs in Eliza Clark's Boy Parts and Otessa Moshfegh's My Year of Rest in Relaxation, but I'm A Fan is smarter than them both. The social and political commentary interspersed with the non-linear plotless prose is expertly done.
I'm A Fan is so of the moment yet so one of a kind. This is a near perfect book. I can't wait to see what Sheena Patel does next.
[To add - and this has nothing to do with the book itself and only the reception it has received - I didn't find I'm A Fan as dark as I expected. Unhinged, certainly. The actions of the protagonist make you wince at times, but to be labelled 'dark' I was expecting something more explicitly sinister to happen].
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Racism, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Classism, Colonisation, and Gaslighting
madamelacy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The unnamed female protagonist obsesses over an unnamed, married older man and obsessively follows (online) him, his wife, another lover and that loverâs associates. The book was often challenging over issues such as misogyny, fidelity, racism and classism.
Written in short, frequently anachronistic chapters, there was no real plot and an abrupt ending with no resolution. Written in the first person, I found the woman selfish and unlikeable.
The triviality of online fandom is highlighted with the manâs other lover being an already privileged white girl with a blue tick which afforded her a greater following.
The book really made me think about who has the dominant voices in society.
Written in short, frequently anachronistic chapters, there was no real plot and an abrupt ending with no resolution. Written in the first person, I found the woman selfish and unlikeable.
The triviality of online fandom is highlighted with the manâs other lover being an already privileged white girl with a blue tick which afforded her a greater following.
The book really made me think about who has the dominant voices in society.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting and Stalking
Moderate: Infidelity and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual content
risemini's review against another edition
dark
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Blood, Homophobia, Sexism, Sexual content, Alcohol, Biphobia, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Death, Lesbophobia, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, and Mental illness
your_true_shelf's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think the writing style of this book just wasn't for me. I liked the concept and I found the reflections on the fakeness of social media, racism and class very well done. However the characters are all so unlikeable, there's no character development and the writing style just isn't my cup of tea.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Infidelity
Moderate: Stalking, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Classism, and Misogyny