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onamoonbeam's review against another edition
5.0
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
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Gaslighting
Minor: Infidelity, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
kc_gilbert's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
clovetra's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting
Minor: Pregnancy
jazhandz's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Moderate: Fatphobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Blood, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
lpogo16's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Blood, Vomit, and Dementia
alloftaysreads's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
klsreads's review against another edition
5.0
I've never read anything quite like this - I loved the vignette narrative structure. The book moved quickly because most sections were short. A couple of the tropes dragged on for me/didn't hit 100%, but I was enthralled and could hardly put it down. A few standouts for me - "Dream House as Deja Vu" (x3), "Dream House as Queer Villainy" (!!!), "Dream House as Bluebeard", "Dream House as the River Lethe", "Dream House as Choose Your Own Adventure" ...... ok, I have to stop or I'm going to quote half of this work.
Even more wild: I was in Iowa City as an undergrad during the events of this book. Did I see Carmen and the Woman from the Dream House at a coffee shop, at Obama's speech, in a bookstore? It makes me shiver, the ways people suffer out of view.
Brilliant. Carmen Maria Machado is an absolute force and a genius of prose and innovative structure. I HIGHLY recommend this book, but mind the CW's. Machado doesn't shy away from the gore at the heart of her story.
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Gun violence, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
ellornaslibrary's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Infidelity and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death and Fire/Fire injury
finleigh's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Sexual content
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Fatphobia, and Homophobia
kvokolek's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts