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estarkreviews 's review for:
Lobsters
by Tom Ellen, Lucy Ivison
I can sum this book up with the following choice phrases: sex pests, drama queens, creepy obsessors, shitty best friends, casual sexism (to name but a few). Suffice to say, I seriously disliked this book.
Yes, the characters did talk very openly and frankly about sexual interactions which, in all fairness, we should be seeing more of (particularly in YA fiction). Hurrah. But that in no way meant that what they were saying or alluding to was in the slightest bit healthy. Because the majority of their screwed-up views of sex were exactly that: screwed-up. Take the following sentences, for example:
"I totally think it's good that you're getting it over with before Kavos."
Ah, peer pressure. You're more than entitled to 'get it over with' if that's how you feel about your own sexual identity. Girl, you do you. But do try not to comment on other people's choices surrounding sex. It really is not your place. This sentence came off to me as the authors saying it's okay for people to pass judgment and feel entitled to do so, too. Very unhealthy.
Or: "Losing your virginity isn't really about you - it's about everyone else. It's about telling everyone else that you've done it, so you can get on with doing it again."
Which, to be fair, is quite the insightful observation. But the authors never challenged or questioned this view; they wrote it as though it's just a well-known fact and nothing can be done about it anyway, so it's totally fine to carry on with this unhealthy opinion. Erm, nope!
And especially this horrific one when Hannah was talking about her lack of sexual encounters: "[It] isn't exactly an impressive list for an eighteen-year-old who isn't a Christian or some sort of freak."
Guess I was 'some sort of freak' back when I was 18 then, Han. Cheers for that. Not a very good message to the readers. At all.
And this one, too: "If you haven't shagged her, or anyone, by the time you go to uni, you might have to start telling people you're religious, or something. That's the only feasible explanation for still being a virgin at this age."
Or, you know, maybe sex doesn't interest you, or you're asexual (or demisexual like me) or maybe you just aren't ready yet and that is A OKAY.
Lobsters really solidified for me how difficult it can be, maneuvering in a presumably sex-obsessed world as a demisexual. I felt completely disconnected from all the characters as a result. It's just the assumption that everyone is interested in sex (or should be) is what gets to me and maybe I am taking it all out on this novel but it's really started to grate on me lately. Where's the representation at?
There was a heavy emphasis on social pressure to have intercourse but I feel as though the authors never really commented on that. They acknowledged it existed but it was as if, by staying silent on the subject, they ultimately can be seen to have condoned that pressure and, on some level, even encouraged it. You know that saying that goes: seeing evil and doing nothing about it is just as bad as committing the evil itself? Well, I sort of felt this way about how the authors handled the issue of peer pressure.
There was a real missed opportunity here. I'm not saying it wasn't realistic - I've witnessed many friends feel that same pressure (and contribute towards it) when I was younger - but I am saying that there should have perhaps been more of a sex-positive message here. The authors could have explored the whole concept of 'virginity' and healthy sexual interactions but instead decided to focus on the mindless drivel that was the 'romantic' relationship of the novel.
Other than the general uneasiness I felt throughout Lobsters, there were other elements that made it a 1-star read for me.
The main protagonists were boring, had no distinct personalities and were so whiney. Literally every single thing that happened was made out to be this huge, disastrous drama. Too much angst (that was written poorly) for my liking. Also, the dialogue was completely unfunny (or, perhaps, just not my kind of humour).
That brings me onto the plot. Predictable. Cliched. And it didn't really flow very well either. It felt like I was reading about separate occurrences that were just strung together blindly. It didn't feel like one smooth, cohesive story with a structured beginning, middle and end. The beginning didn't start off too bad, actually. But, somewhere after that, the book seemed to forget its purpose and felt increasingly unnecessary and pointless the more I read on.
I did enjoy, however, the fact that this was a UKYA (which was why I decided to pick it up in the first place). Although I found certain elements automatically more relatable because it was set in the UK, I still felt a massive disconnect between myself and the MC's and the UK-ness of the novel definitely wasn't enough to make me like it.
The only other thing I liked was Robin's character. Although I found him to be quite problematic, he did remind me a bit of Jay from The Inbetweeners and that's exactly how I imagined Robin's lines being delivered throughout the novel. But, again, this wasn't nearly enough to make me like it.
All in all, a huge disappointment. I read this with the expectation of having a bit of light-hearted fun. Lobsters was anything but fun. It was annoying, boring, angsty, unnecessary and just made me feel completely uncomfortable throughout.
Yes, the characters did talk very openly and frankly about sexual interactions which, in all fairness, we should be seeing more of (particularly in YA fiction). Hurrah. But that in no way meant that what they were saying or alluding to was in the slightest bit healthy. Because the majority of their screwed-up views of sex were exactly that: screwed-up. Take the following sentences, for example:
"I totally think it's good that you're getting it over with before Kavos."
Ah, peer pressure. You're more than entitled to 'get it over with' if that's how you feel about your own sexual identity. Girl, you do you. But do try not to comment on other people's choices surrounding sex. It really is not your place. This sentence came off to me as the authors saying it's okay for people to pass judgment and feel entitled to do so, too. Very unhealthy.
Or: "Losing your virginity isn't really about you - it's about everyone else. It's about telling everyone else that you've done it, so you can get on with doing it again."
Which, to be fair, is quite the insightful observation. But the authors never challenged or questioned this view; they wrote it as though it's just a well-known fact and nothing can be done about it anyway, so it's totally fine to carry on with this unhealthy opinion. Erm, nope!
And especially this horrific one when Hannah was talking about her lack of sexual encounters: "[It] isn't exactly an impressive list for an eighteen-year-old who isn't a Christian or some sort of freak."
Guess I was 'some sort of freak' back when I was 18 then, Han. Cheers for that. Not a very good message to the readers. At all.
And this one, too: "If you haven't shagged her, or anyone, by the time you go to uni, you might have to start telling people you're religious, or something. That's the only feasible explanation for still being a virgin at this age."
Or, you know, maybe sex doesn't interest you, or you're asexual (or demisexual like me) or maybe you just aren't ready yet and that is A OKAY.
Lobsters really solidified for me how difficult it can be, maneuvering in a presumably sex-obsessed world as a demisexual. I felt completely disconnected from all the characters as a result. It's just the assumption that everyone is interested in sex (or should be) is what gets to me and maybe I am taking it all out on this novel but it's really started to grate on me lately. Where's the representation at?
There was a heavy emphasis on social pressure to have intercourse but I feel as though the authors never really commented on that. They acknowledged it existed but it was as if, by staying silent on the subject, they ultimately can be seen to have condoned that pressure and, on some level, even encouraged it. You know that saying that goes: seeing evil and doing nothing about it is just as bad as committing the evil itself? Well, I sort of felt this way about how the authors handled the issue of peer pressure.
There was a real missed opportunity here. I'm not saying it wasn't realistic - I've witnessed many friends feel that same pressure (and contribute towards it) when I was younger - but I am saying that there should have perhaps been more of a sex-positive message here. The authors could have explored the whole concept of 'virginity' and healthy sexual interactions but instead decided to focus on the mindless drivel that was the 'romantic' relationship of the novel.
Other than the general uneasiness I felt throughout Lobsters, there were other elements that made it a 1-star read for me.
The main protagonists were boring, had no distinct personalities and were so whiney. Literally every single thing that happened was made out to be this huge, disastrous drama. Too much angst (that was written poorly) for my liking. Also, the dialogue was completely unfunny (or, perhaps, just not my kind of humour).
That brings me onto the plot. Predictable. Cliched. And it didn't really flow very well either. It felt like I was reading about separate occurrences that were just strung together blindly. It didn't feel like one smooth, cohesive story with a structured beginning, middle and end. The beginning didn't start off too bad, actually. But, somewhere after that, the book seemed to forget its purpose and felt increasingly unnecessary and pointless the more I read on.
I did enjoy, however, the fact that this was a UKYA (which was why I decided to pick it up in the first place). Although I found certain elements automatically more relatable because it was set in the UK, I still felt a massive disconnect between myself and the MC's and the UK-ness of the novel definitely wasn't enough to make me like it.
The only other thing I liked was Robin's character. Although I found him to be quite problematic, he did remind me a bit of Jay from The Inbetweeners and that's exactly how I imagined Robin's lines being delivered throughout the novel. But, again, this wasn't nearly enough to make me like it.
All in all, a huge disappointment. I read this with the expectation of having a bit of light-hearted fun. Lobsters was anything but fun. It was annoying, boring, angsty, unnecessary and just made me feel completely uncomfortable throughout.