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mamaewalk's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Creative, unique, and utterly badass story. Reads like a memoir.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Misogyny
Minor: Cancer, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, War, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders
percys_panda_pillow_pet's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This book gave me trauma, and I'm only half-joking. Okay, for real though, When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill cracked open a lot of feelings and thoughts I've had all my life and especially now as an adult as I try to explore exactly who I am in this world. This book is about identity, it is about trauma, it is about rage, it is about so much more than you can put into words.
When Kelly Barnhill wants you to believe in something, she puts her whole soul into it. By the end of this book, I was convinced that dragoning was real, and wondering why I couldn't dragon myself away, or even if I could. I know at times her metaphor can fall apart at the seams, but that's honestly what helped ground it for me. These are dragons, these are women. Dragoning can mean everything and it can mean nothing, though the latter would be unusual. Pretty much every time, that meaning made me want to cry. Often, I did cry while reading this book. And after finishing it too. It struck a chord in me so forcefully: the depiction of female generational trauma and the mixing of rage and sadness and hurt and unfairness and love one can have for their mother.
At times, I was a bit frustrated with Barnhill's decisions throughout the book. I needed a bit more about trans people and what dragoning meant for them, and I know I am not alone in feeling like the intersectional aspects of feminism were a bit lacking, though in some ways that seems par for the course of the 50s and 60s. This book filled me with emptiness at the lack of catharsis in some areas. There was a lot of build up and not enough resolution for me at times. Which, in some ways, feels perfect for the messiness of life, that truthfully we don't often get the catharsis we need. But I disliked the hollowness and in the end, I felt dissatisfied and want to scream, "Why?" and "It isn't fair!"
Do not look to this book to heal you, it will wring you dry. I can't wait for the day I will reread this, and pick things apart more. And maybe by then I'll have actually settled on a star rating for this book. For now, I leave that empty. This book is too much for me now.
When Kelly Barnhill wants you to believe in something, she puts her whole soul into it. By the end of this book, I was convinced that dragoning was real, and wondering why I couldn't dragon myself away, or even if I could. I know at times her metaphor can fall apart at the seams, but that's honestly what helped ground it for me. These are dragons, these are women. Dragoning can mean everything and it can mean nothing, though the latter would be unusual. Pretty much every time, that meaning made me want to cry. Often, I did cry while reading this book. And after finishing it too. It struck a chord in me so forcefully: the depiction of female generational trauma and the mixing of rage and sadness and hurt and unfairness and love one can have for their mother.
At times, I was a bit frustrated with Barnhill's decisions throughout the book. I needed a bit more about trans people and what dragoning meant for them, and I know I am not alone in feeling like the intersectional aspects of feminism were a bit lacking, though in some ways that seems par for the course of the 50s and 60s. This book filled me with emptiness at the lack of catharsis in some areas. There was a lot of build up and not enough resolution for me at times. Which, in some ways, feels perfect for the messiness of life, that truthfully we don't often get the catharsis we need. But I disliked the hollowness and in the end, I felt dissatisfied and want to scream, "Why?" and "It isn't fair!"
Do not look to this book to heal you, it will wring you dry. I can't wait for the day I will reread this, and pick things apart more. And maybe by then I'll have actually settled on a star rating for this book. For now, I leave that empty. This book is too much for me now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Cancer, Death of parent, Abandonment, Grief, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, and Sexism
Moderate: Sexual assault, Body shaming, Violence, Outing, Sexual harassment, Rape, Child abuse, and Confinement
Minor: Gun violence, Transphobia, Sexual violence, Murder, Alcohol, Alcoholism, War, and Drug use
kelseyr713's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"He looked at the window, toward the sky. In a brief, wild moment, I imagined it filled with dragons. Burning houses. Burning buildings. Swallowing men whole. I imagined the entire Mass Dragoning happening again, but bigger this time—every city, every town, every block, dark wings and sharp jaws and bright scales crowding the sky. I imagined myself unleashed, unhooked, unraveled, an explosion of heat and rage and frustration. My bones felt hot. My skin felt tight. The air in my lungs seemed to sizzle."
This alternate history fiction is a love letter to women, libraries, and science. Under the surface, it’s also challenging notions of what should be considered "normal" and encouraging not ignorance and fear, but love and acceptance. I loved and devoured it.
Content warnings: homophobia, parental emotional abuse, death of parents, cancer, body horror (although I personally found the dragoning described beautifully, this may not be true for all readers).
This alternate history fiction is a love letter to women, libraries, and science. Under the surface, it’s also challenging notions of what should be considered "normal" and encouraging not ignorance and fear, but love and acceptance. I loved and devoured it.
Content warnings: homophobia, parental emotional abuse, death of parents, cancer, body horror (although I personally found the dragoning described beautifully, this may not be true for all readers).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Cancer, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Sexism
Moderate: Grief, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Body horror, and Dysphoria
Minor: Murder, Physical abuse, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
kshertz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I friggin loved this book. It could be the time period. I love the idea of women becoming dragons spontaneously in 1955. It’s a result of anytime the woman is suppressed, or had their rights pushed away, or tried to be put in a box. There’s a few stories going on but the main is a family where the mom doesn’t spontaneously dragon but probably should have, and the aunt does. The young daughter is left to pick up the pieces and decide what she and her cousin (pretend now sister) will do. Her dad is trash. The other side is people trying to silence all the dragonings happening. There are fake centers for learning and congressional hearings. It’s just brilliant in my humble opinion. I only loved it more when I found out it was written and dedicated to Christine Blasey Ford and written after the Brett Kavanaugh hearing. I think if you’re currently enraged and feeling helpless, this book made me feel a little less alone.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Child abuse, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Biphobia, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Murder
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