A review by brnineworms
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark

dark funny reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

“It’s hard to just look, isn’t it?”

To describe Irina, the protagonist/narrator of Boy Parts, as unlikeable and unreliable would be an understatement. “Cruel” is a word that comes up a few times. She’s sadistic. She’s irreverent. She’s, uh... messy. She’s also a photographer, which is neat. Clark does some interesting stuff with this; the camera producing a perfect record vs the human mind distorting images, Irina’s need to be seen vs the way she situates herself behind the camera, documenting. There’s a lot to interrogate thematically.

Since there’s not much in the way of plot, I’m compelled only by the quality of the prose. Fortunately, I really like the way Clark writes. I’ll keep an eye out for her other work.

Unfortunately, I don’t like the way the story starts to form

as the titular(?) “boy” is revealed and Irina’s delusions become more severe as she fixates on him

but that belated momentum goes nowhere. It just... stops. There’s no satisfaction in the ending.

I liked most of it. I’m giving Boy Parts four stars because it is good, but not spectacular.

CONTENT WARNINGS:

violence, murder, sexual harassment and assault, grooming, verbal abuse from a parent, classism, body image stuff, self harm and self-destructive behaviour, drugs and alcohol, vomit, some blood and gore, hallucinations