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abbysbookwor1d 's review for:
Any Man
by Amber Tamblyn
This book has left me with such mixed feelings.
📖 Any Man is told from the perspective of the male survivors of a female serial rapist. This follows the aftermath and the trauma it's left behind not just their inner turmoil but also from outside forces such as the media.
✨ Review ✨
Where to even start with this review. Firstly I do like the message of this book I think it brings up important conversations about rape culture, the way we treat victims and how the media and public sensationalist victims. How we focus on the victim and not the perpetrator, how we as a society question the victim, shame and ridicule them.
However I don't think it adds anything new to the conversation. It's things I already knew, have already spoken on and will continue to do so. For me it doesn't leave a lasting impression because I feel like I've been beat over the head with something very obvious.
Which also makes me question who is this book for? I want to say it's for men and women who feed into rape culture. But those people won't be reading this book and even if they do this is a reversal of a problem that isn't fully acknowledged or believed. The people that should be reading this won't be left changed. And if you're already in the know and empathise with survivors then again this will just beat you over the head with an obvious point.
I also wasn't the biggest fan of the stylistic choices within the book. This is mixed media there are few chapters with a narrative voice. It also uses poetry, letters, tweets, messages to tell the story. This had moments where I was really engaged and I think it shows a solid portrait of the inner turmoil of survivors in the aftermath and also their journey to healing. But for me the poetry and tweets really knocked me out of the story which added to the loss of impact and emotional.
Overall it was a great conversation starter but it's not something that wowed me or left me with a lasting impression.
📖 Any Man is told from the perspective of the male survivors of a female serial rapist. This follows the aftermath and the trauma it's left behind not just their inner turmoil but also from outside forces such as the media.
✨ Review ✨
Where to even start with this review. Firstly I do like the message of this book I think it brings up important conversations about rape culture, the way we treat victims and how the media and public sensationalist victims. How we focus on the victim and not the perpetrator, how we as a society question the victim, shame and ridicule them.
However I don't think it adds anything new to the conversation. It's things I already knew, have already spoken on and will continue to do so. For me it doesn't leave a lasting impression because I feel like I've been beat over the head with something very obvious.
Which also makes me question who is this book for? I want to say it's for men and women who feed into rape culture. But those people won't be reading this book and even if they do this is a reversal of a problem that isn't fully acknowledged or believed. The people that should be reading this won't be left changed. And if you're already in the know and empathise with survivors then again this will just beat you over the head with an obvious point.
I also wasn't the biggest fan of the stylistic choices within the book. This is mixed media there are few chapters with a narrative voice. It also uses poetry, letters, tweets, messages to tell the story. This had moments where I was really engaged and I think it shows a solid portrait of the inner turmoil of survivors in the aftermath and also their journey to healing. But for me the poetry and tweets really knocked me out of the story which added to the loss of impact and emotional.
Overall it was a great conversation starter but it's not something that wowed me or left me with a lasting impression.