anyagt 's review for:

This Is How You Remember It by Catherine Prasifka

4.0

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A moving novel that examines how growing up with the internet has impacted the first generation to really have private access to it. As the technology advanced and became more privately accessible, it opened up a world of abuse that overwhelmed many of the young people who were first to explore chatrooms and social media. We follow a girl growing up from a pre-teen to a young adult, when her family gets their first at-home shared computer, she is instantly transfixed by the internet. We see how it impacts her sense of self, her self-worth in relationships with men, the strength of her relationships with family and friends, and how easily misogyny and abuse managed to explode via the Internet, normalising degrading and exploitative behaviour towards girls and women. This is a timely coming of age that examines the turmoil of becoming a woman, with the introduction of the internet acting as a terrifying and addictive amplifier to that turmoil. I enjoyed Prasifika’s writing style, which portrayed the shame and uncertainty of growing up with rawness but also deep compassion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Canongate Books for the advanced reader copy of this book.