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challenging
dark
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
I had huge expectations going into Her Body and Other Parties. This collection has been praised so highly to me and the themes it explores are ones that I naturally gravitate towards in literature. Carmen Maria Machado blew those expectations to smithereens within the first short story. Honestly one of the best books I’ve read this year.
Her Body and Other Parties discusses the many forms of violence enacted towards women’s bodies through the use of magical realism. Machado writes with rage, heartache, and beautiful symbolism. This is not a collection that tells the audience what the purpose of the pieces, or the many takeaway, was. Instead Machado encourages her readers to interpret their own meanings from the stories she shares.
This collection left me feeling ripped open. I had to take some time to process it before I could write this review.
Machado’s writing in Her Body and Other Parties makes me eager to pick up another of her works. I think that’s the mark of really excellent writing. Machado plays with tone and pacing in a way that enhances the overall feel of each story and the collection as a whole. Her use of language appeals to the readers empathy and makes for a moving experience. I found the writing accessible but themes can often be a bit more abstract, which might detract the overall interpretability of the writing for some readers. Personally, I enjoyed this.
Her Body and Other Parties tackles themes of identity, the body and violences enacted upon it (be it at the hands of others or the self), motherhood, toxic relationships, and the idea of The Mad Woman. All in all, I think Machado does a powerful job of expressing the complexities of womanhood. She leaves the reader with a lot to think about. These themes are explored through the use of magical realism, which I thought drew attention to themes in a subtle but impactful way.
Machado’s writing in Her Body and Other Parties makes me eager to pick up another of her works. I think that’s the mark of really excellent writing. Machado plays with tone and pacing in a way that enhances the overall feel of each story and the collection as a whole. Her use of language appeals to the readers empathy and makes for a moving experience. I found the writing accessible but themes can often be a bit more abstract, which might detract the overall interpretability of the writing for some readers. Personally, I enjoyed this.
Her Body and Other Parties tackles themes of identity, the body and violences enacted upon it (be it at the hands of others or the self), motherhood, toxic relationships, and the idea of The Mad Woman. All in all, I think Machado does a powerful job of expressing the complexities of womanhood. She leaves the reader with a lot to think about. These themes are explored through the use of magical realism, which I thought drew attention to themes in a subtle but impactful way.
This book challenged me as a reader to really apply my critical thinking skills and decipher what the message of these stories were and what I took away from them. Her Body and Other Parties addresses such important themes with nuance, in a way that does a very respectable level of justice to the themes of the stories. I also loved just how queer this book was and the way Machado never addresses its queerness. It is so refreshingly normalised within this book.
The only reason I withheld the 5-star rating from this book was because the story ‘Especially Heinous’, which conceptually was cool but the execution did not live up to it. I did not enjoy reading it at all. I found it boring and far too long for what it was trying to achieve. Maybe if I already had some sort of investment in Law and Order SUV, I would’ve enjoyed it more. As it stands, I skimmed most of that story to get it over with. I might even recommend just skipping it if within the first few pages, you find its not your thing, because it really doesn’t get better. I think my overall enjoyment of the book would’ve been higher had I not attempted to read it. I also think I would’ve finished the book faster if that one short story hadn’t single-handedly sent me into a reading slump.
The only reason I withheld the 5-star rating from this book was because the story ‘Especially Heinous’, which conceptually was cool but the execution did not live up to it. I did not enjoy reading it at all. I found it boring and far too long for what it was trying to achieve. Maybe if I already had some sort of investment in Law and Order SUV, I would’ve enjoyed it more. As it stands, I skimmed most of that story to get it over with. I might even recommend just skipping it if within the first few pages, you find its not your thing, because it really doesn’t get better. I think my overall enjoyment of the book would’ve been higher had I not attempted to read it. I also think I would’ve finished the book faster if that one short story hadn’t single-handedly sent me into a reading slump.
That being said, every other story was really really good and so worth reading. I think Machado is a fantastic writer and Her Body and Other Parties is an exceptional debut. Anyone that enjoys feminist literature, magical realism and a slightly eery feeling to their fiction will enjoy this collection. It is well-paced and interesting. Her Body and Other Parties stays with you after you’ve closed the last page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Sexual content
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Amazing, incredible, showstopping, never the same! I really loved this collection, the themes in it were so good and the writing is so elegant and the horror, some stuff had me grimacing physically. The only men story was Especially Heinous, which might be bc I've never seen SVU, so that's why this doesn't get the full 5, bc that one was also especially long
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Alcohol
Moderate: Animal death, Misogyny, Rape, Vomit, Stalking
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Abortion
Moderate: Death
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexism, Blood
The first story, The Husband Stitch, has depictions of underage sex; the second story, Inventory, also describes sexual interactions between minors. Inventory and Mothers depict relationships with questionable age gaps.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book is confusing at times, but maybe I just need to read this like I'm a engl 302 teacher
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
These are excellent stories, but I often found myself thinking they felt too long. Major TW for trauma and sexual assault. Though there isn't any explicitly described, the effects are all through the pages.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Mental illness, Sexual content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
5 years late to the party, but wow, what an outstanding book. Extremely glad to have finally read this spooky, real, unreal, wild and unnerving collection. Especially the SVU novella.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I wasn't sure what to expect of this, but I loved it. Some stories were stronger/better than others but each one was still enjoyable. The Husband Stitch, Inventory, and Eight Bites were probably my favorites out of all of them. Some stories were a little more confusing for me to understand and wrap my head around though. I feel like I'd have to reread them to fully understand.
There are some things I would say to check content warnings on, but if you are an avid reader of horror/thrillers it's nothing too unpleasant or unbearable.
There are some things I would say to check content warnings on, but if you are an avid reader of horror/thrillers it's nothing too unpleasant or unbearable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Mental illness, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexism, Vomit, Pregnancy
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I think the reading is worth for the “Especially Heinous” short story, which is the one that impressed me the most, especially for the choice of narrating through episodes summaries of a tv show. That story was brilliant, but unfortunately I found the rest of them quite boring. Maybe it’s because I am not that into fantasy / dystopia books, but I did love her memoir and her writing style is always good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Rape, Violence, Vomit, Stalking, Sexual harassment