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A review by mel_muses
The Edge of Being by James Brandon
3.0
I usually put trigger warnings at the end, but I'm going to put them here, at the top, because I was majorly unprepared and don't want anyone else to be, either.
Trigger Warnings: depictions of self-harm (cutting), talk of suicidal ideation, dismissal of mental illness of a side character, physical and emotional abuse of a side character, discussion of sexual assault of a side character, transphobia, queerphobia, misgendering
The Edge of Being follows Isaac (nicknamed Fig) on his search for his father. Feeling lost without his dad, and not really knowing what he wants to do with his life, he decides to take his boyfriend and follow the trail of clues his dad left behind. Except in the middle of his road trip to San Francisco, his car breaks down and he meets a girl named Max who offers them a ride. And while Fig and Max start forming a closer relationship, cracks in his relationship with his boyfriend start to grow larger and larger. And Fig feels more lost than ever before.
I finished this book with an overwhelming feeling of whiplash. I think this book had a lot of strands it was trying to follow through with — Fig's relationship with his boyfriend, his growing feelings for Max, his search for his dad, and his understanding of himself — and it just ended up being too much. I would have really liked to have seen less things thrown in there for shock value, and more development on maybe one or two aspects. And while I liked the overall feeling and understanding Fig comes to about his dad, I wish it happened sooner.
I loved the way queer history before Stonewall was worked in. I really enjoyed how the past and present collide, and how I was able to learn along with Fig about all these riots and protests and the key role trans women played in them.
What I was not a big fan of in terms of the queer rep, though, was how it had the pansexual MC lowkey cheat on his boyfriend? I mean, no matter your sexuality, that's just... not a great thing to do. But (and speaking as someone who is NOT pan or bi) I really wish that was less of a plot point. I think it could have been so much more impactful had the boyfriend (I forget his name) either (a) not existent (b) already be broken up with or (c) just be another friend. I don't think it's a good look to have the main character fall in love with someone else while still in a relationship — especially considering how it unwittingly falls into the stereotype of people who like more than one gender being unfaithful.
I don't not recommend this book — it had a lot of great history worked in, and I don't think there's much other media like it. However, I really did not enjoy how much of the plot rested on extreme drama and events, and I felt there was a lot of undeveloped space of actual self-exploration.
Trigger Warnings: depictions of self-harm (cutting), talk of suicidal ideation, dismissal of mental illness of a side character, physical and emotional abuse of a side character, discussion of sexual assault of a side character, transphobia, queerphobia, misgendering
The Edge of Being follows Isaac (nicknamed Fig) on his search for his father. Feeling lost without his dad, and not really knowing what he wants to do with his life, he decides to take his boyfriend and follow the trail of clues his dad left behind. Except in the middle of his road trip to San Francisco, his car breaks down and he meets a girl named Max who offers them a ride. And while Fig and Max start forming a closer relationship, cracks in his relationship with his boyfriend start to grow larger and larger. And Fig feels more lost than ever before.
I finished this book with an overwhelming feeling of whiplash. I think this book had a lot of strands it was trying to follow through with — Fig's relationship with his boyfriend, his growing feelings for Max, his search for his dad, and his understanding of himself — and it just ended up being too much. I would have really liked to have seen less things thrown in there for shock value, and more development on maybe one or two aspects. And while I liked the overall feeling and understanding Fig comes to about his dad, I wish it happened sooner.
I loved the way queer history before Stonewall was worked in. I really enjoyed how the past and present collide, and how I was able to learn along with Fig about all these riots and protests and the key role trans women played in them.
What I was not a big fan of in terms of the queer rep, though, was how it had the pansexual MC lowkey cheat on his boyfriend? I mean, no matter your sexuality, that's just... not a great thing to do. But (and speaking as someone who is NOT pan or bi) I really wish that was less of a plot point. I think it could have been so much more impactful had the boyfriend (I forget his name) either (a) not existent (b) already be broken up with or (c) just be another friend. I don't think it's a good look to have the main character fall in love with someone else while still in a relationship — especially considering how it unwittingly falls into the stereotype of people who like more than one gender being unfaithful.
I don't not recommend this book — it had a lot of great history worked in, and I don't think there's much other media like it. However, I really did not enjoy how much of the plot rested on extreme drama and events, and I felt there was a lot of undeveloped space of actual self-exploration.