Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
It's an excellent book critically. In terms of my enjoyment as the reader, sometimes the more mundane details grew tedious. As much as I really find any story's characters' everyday lives and "mundane" observations very much an important component, I grew bored every so often with these characters'. Likely because I am not someone who can appreciate much about Kansas besides its nature. Additionally, I think the POVs could've just been limited to Neil's and Brian's.
The graphic and unflinching depictions of child sexual abuse and underage prostitution didn't impact the way I feel about the book; I *really* have to admire Heim for it. I don't think most readers will stomach it well, especially without being prepared for it by seeing the film beforehand. In all honesty, this is one of those rare times where I appreciate the film adaptation more than the book, it really expertly conveys the bleakness, the melancholy, the loneliness, the dreaminess severed into frames and intercepted by the ugly reality of things, but there are certain elements I think the film should've included from the source material, such as the last paragraph, which I personally think served better as a last note than the bad monologue at the end of the film. It's terribly, terribly sad. Even though I felt restless at the end of the book, the last chapter nearly made up for all of the tediousness.
One note I do want to make is an observation that is just now settling on me after having rewatched the film. Those genius divides that the editor placed in the film, as well as the flashback sequence at the end, depict so well something unsaid--Neil's longing and bittersweet memories of the "love" vs. Brian's dreamlike, disoriented blankness at the hands of the trauma. There's no better way to convey the feelings experienced as the viewer, and as someone from a background of abuse feeling secondhand empathy, than bleak melancholy.
The graphic and unflinching depictions of child sexual abuse and underage prostitution didn't impact the way I feel about the book; I *really* have to admire Heim for it. I don't think most readers will stomach it well, especially without being prepared for it by seeing the film beforehand. In all honesty, this is one of those rare times where I appreciate the film adaptation more than the book, it really expertly conveys the bleakness, the melancholy, the loneliness, the dreaminess severed into frames and intercepted by the ugly reality of things, but there are certain elements I think the film should've included from the source material, such as the last paragraph, which I personally think served better as a last note than the bad monologue at the end of the film. It's terribly, terribly sad. Even though I felt restless at the end of the book, the last chapter nearly made up for all of the tediousness.
One note I do want to make is an observation that is just now settling on me after having rewatched the film. Those genius divides that the editor placed in the film, as well as the flashback sequence at the end, depict so well something unsaid--Neil's longing and bittersweet memories of the "love" vs. Brian's dreamlike, disoriented blankness at the hands of the trauma. There's no better way to convey the feelings experienced as the viewer, and as someone from a background of abuse feeling secondhand empathy, than bleak melancholy.
Out of the realm of what I usually read but it was a good book. I wish there was some more closure but I guess that doesn't always happen in life.
Well there we are then, to say I liked Mysterious Skin doesn't feel right somehow, it's not a book one likes or dislikes as such, it's different/more than that for me- gripping, sordid, unsettling and a restraint that highlights the disturbing unpleasantness of what Brian and Neil have gone through.
The way in which the abuse has affected them and the fallout from that is shown in unflinching but not over-stressed detail that makes it the more uncomfortable and necessary to read. Another plus point is the lack of easy answers at the end, no crisp clean resolution with consequences, it just is.
Recommended, but qualified for sexual/child abuse and assault.
The way in which the abuse has affected them and the fallout from that is shown in unflinching but not over-stressed detail that makes it the more uncomfortable and necessary to read. Another plus point is the lack of easy answers at the end, no crisp clean resolution with consequences, it just is.
Recommended, but qualified for sexual/child abuse and assault.
I always feel weird recommending this book or film to people because it is so disturbing. But it is also beautiful, heartbreaking and an important look at trauma and how we deal with it. I'm also amazed that I like the movie as much as the book, that rarely happens.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
love this book so so much
challenging
dark
A former roommate of mine convinced me to go see the movie version of Mysterious Skin when it was in theaters. He'd read the book, loved it, and decided we both needed to see the movie during the one weekend it played at one of the localish independent theaters.
I thought I read the book before we went to go see it, but I was barely three pages in before I realized that I'd never read it, that I had read some other book that he'd recommended, bought my own copy of Mysterious Skin, and have been moving it with me from house to house for over a decade.
The movie adaptation is Very Faithful, if I'm remembering it properly. Many times during the book, I was visualizing scenes from the movie. But the book is worth reading whether or not you've seen the movie and know how it ends.
Each chapter shifts perspective from the two main characters, their very few close friends, and one of their siblings. And Heim does a great job choosing which character's lens were looking through when he reveals parts of the story.
I don't think any of the reveals are ever surprises to the reader by the time he gets to them, but they're often surprises to the characters, which seems more devastating. I'm definitely going to have to reread this at some point.
I would recommend this to people interested in writing fiction from various perspectives, people looking for books about melodramatic events that don't seem as over-the-top as they probably should, people looking to read queer books by/about twentieth century queer lives that don't reduce their characters to expected stereotypes, and people looking for an engrossing book written in a conversational tone by someone who knows how to tell a story.
I thought I read the book before we went to go see it, but I was barely three pages in before I realized that I'd never read it, that I had read some other book that he'd recommended, bought my own copy of Mysterious Skin, and have been moving it with me from house to house for over a decade.
The movie adaptation is Very Faithful, if I'm remembering it properly. Many times during the book, I was visualizing scenes from the movie. But the book is worth reading whether or not you've seen the movie and know how it ends.
Each chapter shifts perspective from the two main characters, their very few close friends, and one of their siblings. And Heim does a great job choosing which character's lens were looking through when he reveals parts of the story.
I don't think any of the reveals are ever surprises to the reader by the time he gets to them, but they're often surprises to the characters, which seems more devastating. I'm definitely going to have to reread this at some point.
I would recommend this to people interested in writing fiction from various perspectives, people looking for books about melodramatic events that don't seem as over-the-top as they probably should, people looking to read queer books by/about twentieth century queer lives that don't reduce their characters to expected stereotypes, and people looking for an engrossing book written in a conversational tone by someone who knows how to tell a story.
This is easily the most gruesome and explicit book I've ever read. Heim's descriptive powers are a double edged sword when it comes to telling this story. The abuse is painfully detailed and often had me physically recoiling from the book, but I was drawn back in with the beautiful descriptions of rural Kansas and the characters that inhabited it. Mysterious Skin will undoubtedly haunt me forever.