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A review by writtenontheflyleaves
Three Women by Lisa Taddeo
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.75
Three Women by Lisa Taddeo 🫀
🌟🌟🌟🌟✨
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This was one of my last reads of 2020 and it ended the reading year on a high!
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🗣 The concept: Lisa Taddeo weaves together the stories of three real women, whose lives she believes reveal something buried and true about women’s desires. The research here is unbelievably deep, and it gives the book the quality of a novel as you read it - it feels hyper-real almost, as Taddeo takes you inside the minds of these women in a way you don’t expect from non fiction. Lina, who is having an affair; Maggie, who was seduced by her teacher as a teen, and Sloane, who has sex with other men while her husband watches.
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Here’s the thing about this book: I thought it was a masterpiece. I have my reservations about some of it - for instance, Taddeo seems fundamentally sceptical of supportive relationships between women, and in general any book that purports to reveal truths about Women’s Desires I take with a grain of salt. Still, overall it was beautiful and complex and viscerally real.
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However. I would also never recommend this book to anyone unless I knew them very well - the nature of the stories here, in combination with the writing style, could make this a really disturbing read.
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❤️ Read it if you like creative nonfiction and stories that render teenage girlhood in a way that makes you ache inside. Maggie’s story in particular really tugged at me.
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🚫 Avoid it if you’re looking for something light or optimistic, and if you’re avoiding stories that deal with rape, eating disorders, adult/minor relationships, and suicidal thoughts. Honestly if you’re avoiding any particular trigger I’d research this book before reading - @the.storygraph has a content warnings section so start there!
🌟🌟🌟🌟✨
-
This was one of my last reads of 2020 and it ended the reading year on a high!
-
🗣 The concept: Lisa Taddeo weaves together the stories of three real women, whose lives she believes reveal something buried and true about women’s desires. The research here is unbelievably deep, and it gives the book the quality of a novel as you read it - it feels hyper-real almost, as Taddeo takes you inside the minds of these women in a way you don’t expect from non fiction. Lina, who is having an affair; Maggie, who was seduced by her teacher as a teen, and Sloane, who has sex with other men while her husband watches.
-
Here’s the thing about this book: I thought it was a masterpiece. I have my reservations about some of it - for instance, Taddeo seems fundamentally sceptical of supportive relationships between women, and in general any book that purports to reveal truths about Women’s Desires I take with a grain of salt. Still, overall it was beautiful and complex and viscerally real.
-
However. I would also never recommend this book to anyone unless I knew them very well - the nature of the stories here, in combination with the writing style, could make this a really disturbing read.
-
❤️ Read it if you like creative nonfiction and stories that render teenage girlhood in a way that makes you ache inside. Maggie’s story in particular really tugged at me.
-
🚫 Avoid it if you’re looking for something light or optimistic, and if you’re avoiding stories that deal with rape, eating disorders, adult/minor relationships, and suicidal thoughts. Honestly if you’re avoiding any particular trigger I’d research this book before reading - @the.storygraph has a content warnings section so start there!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Toxic relationship