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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was incredibly uncomfortable as I read the whole book, and that is what I admired most--how Dunn pushed me out of my comfort zone and forced me to look at a world I didn't want to live in. She uses gritty, ugly language to build her world of "undesirables" and it is very effective. I couldn't read it in one sitting (which I often do with books) because the world she put me in was exhausting and dark and I needed a break from it. I liked the protagonist, Oly, which is good because there are a lot of characters in this book that are easy to hate.
I first read this book when I was only 11 -- far too young to really appreciate it. I only had vague memories of gross sex scenes and something about a woman with a pig's tail. I'm really glad I re-visited 'Geek Love'; it is one of the most original books I've ever encountered.
'Geek Love' is one of those books that you want to thrust upon everyone you know, but can't really explain why it's so damn good, only that they must read it. On the surface, this is a book about a circus family: the ringmaster father, the former geek-turned-failed-acrobat mother, and their "engineered" freak children. But it's also an incredible book about our perceptions of beauty and normalcy, how far we'll go for family, the desperate need to belong, the dangers (and allures?) of obsession, and the dichotomy between the sacred and the profane. It's a book that defies description because it attempts to tackle everything, as viewed through the skewed pink lenses of an albino hunchback dwarf.
This is not to say that this is a perfect book. There are passages -- whole pages -- of awkward syntax and odd, strained metaphors. There are a lot of people who really hated the ending. I feel that when Dunn gets it right ("it" being metaphors, or even simple, lyrical syntax), she gets it really, really right. When it fails, it stands out even more. I happen to land happily in the camp of "loved this book"; the gems planted throughout the story far outshine any missteps.
'Geek Love' is one of those books that you want to thrust upon everyone you know, but can't really explain why it's so damn good, only that they must read it. On the surface, this is a book about a circus family: the ringmaster father, the former geek-turned-failed-acrobat mother, and their "engineered" freak children. But it's also an incredible book about our perceptions of beauty and normalcy, how far we'll go for family, the desperate need to belong, the dangers (and allures?) of obsession, and the dichotomy between the sacred and the profane. It's a book that defies description because it attempts to tackle everything, as viewed through the skewed pink lenses of an albino hunchback dwarf.
This is not to say that this is a perfect book. There are passages -- whole pages -- of awkward syntax and odd, strained metaphors. There are a lot of people who really hated the ending. I feel that when Dunn gets it right ("it" being metaphors, or even simple, lyrical syntax), she gets it really, really right. When it fails, it stands out even more. I happen to land happily in the camp of "loved this book"; the gems planted throughout the story far outshine any missteps.
This is a book you can't judge by its cover — the definition of geek here isn't the one you're used to. This book is royally fucked up in a multitude of ways and yet I couldn't stop reading. It's macabre, it doesn't shy on the gritty, gross details, and overall it's just...tragic. And I loved reading every bit of it.
i truly despised this book. should have jumped ship sooner.
The reviews on this one are all over the place, and I can totally see why. Although I am glad I read this one, it is not one I will be recommending widely to others. I think the premise is interesting, but I think that lots more editing needed to be done. There were parts I was really invested in the story, and parts where my mind was constantly wandering and I had to go back and listen again. This is a long book, and parts of it definitely dragged. I appreciated how everyone's uniqueness was embraced, but.....it just felt like too much at times. This is a book club read, and I will be interested in the discussion because there is definitely much to discuss!
this book was recommended a whole whole bunch in weird, gritty recommendation requests but i struggled with it a lot, lol. i couldn’t make complete sense of what was happening in certain scenes due to the superfluous way the book was written. the characters were excellently presented but the rest was just plain hard for me to read tbh. was hoping to like it a lot more.
REREAD MAY 2020: I LOVE IT EVEN MORE
Carnival acts, sibling rivalry, scandal, murder, quasi-religious cults, and lots and lots of surgical operations ... Geek Love is a freakishly fascinating story about the Binewskis, a family whose children are born with mutations intentionally created by drugs and radioisotopes. The Binewskis travel across the country, embracing the oddities of their human bodies to lure in audiences and perform stellar carnival acts. But their physical mutations lead then to have seemingly superhuman personalities, for better or for worse. This story is full of characters you love to hate, characters you hate that you love, and characters you want to just slap in the face. Katherine Dunn does a wonderful job of weaving together moments of the Binewskis lives to create a masterpiece reflection on what's considered ugly or beautiful, sane or insane. The book is written amazingly, so much so that I was absolutely disgusted by the characters - not because of their physical appearances and unique traits but because of the mentalities they'd learned to develop as a result of their way of life. Riveting, dark, and sometimes even horrifying, Geek Love was definitely a page turner. But beware, because each chapter gets more and more bizarre and unsettling than the last.
Carnival acts, sibling rivalry, scandal, murder, quasi-religious cults, and lots and lots of surgical operations ... Geek Love is a freakishly fascinating story about the Binewskis, a family whose children are born with mutations intentionally created by drugs and radioisotopes. The Binewskis travel across the country, embracing the oddities of their human bodies to lure in audiences and perform stellar carnival acts. But their physical mutations lead then to have seemingly superhuman personalities, for better or for worse. This story is full of characters you love to hate, characters you hate that you love, and characters you want to just slap in the face. Katherine Dunn does a wonderful job of weaving together moments of the Binewskis lives to create a masterpiece reflection on what's considered ugly or beautiful, sane or insane. The book is written amazingly, so much so that I was absolutely disgusted by the characters - not because of their physical appearances and unique traits but because of the mentalities they'd learned to develop as a result of their way of life. Riveting, dark, and sometimes even horrifying, Geek Love was definitely a page turner. But beware, because each chapter gets more and more bizarre and unsettling than the last.
Teetering on a 5 star read for me. I like how nasty a read it was and how despite how horrible everything is you still get super attached to the characters. However, I don’t feel like it has a ton to say about disabilities or a lasting message to leave me with. However, the characters and story are so remarkably brutal and unforgettable that it’s probably the best carnival book out there.