A review by armandilloh
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

First book that I've read with such a creative style and approach to story telling. Each chapter felt like it's on self contained story but simultaneously served a higher purpose to progress this biographical account of the author's experience through an abusive relationship and exiting the other side. The narrative choice was especially appropriate to detail the non-linearity of attempting to retell the traumas of an abusive relationship, while the reader is left to put the pieces together it often mirrors the issues with resurfacing the memories and recollections that the victim has spent years trying to communicate. The book also covers many topics which construct this intersectional experience of Carmen's life: the absence of accounts detailing queer abuse, the struggles of maintaining a spotless image for the queer community, the influences of religious upbringings on queer youth and body dysmorphia. 
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