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A review by anakelly21
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark
4.0
4.5 stars from me and a long review incoming. Huge, ginormous trigger warning in this book for rape, sexual assault, eating disorders, and *a lot* of violence all around. OK! With that being said, let's get into it. This book truly has no dull moments. Whether it's the beginning of the novel, where we see our gloriously deranged protagonist Irina consume every drug under the sun and the smallest amount of food possible, or throughout the story where she directs kink and BDSM-oriented photoshoots with random men, I found that my mouth was (more often than not) left hanging open. A book with this seriously unhinged of a plot could have easily rested on those laurels alone -- pure entertainment, shock value, etc. But what really got me hooked into this was how Clark not only masterfully developed Irina's character, but how she then placed Irina seamlessly into the greater context of gender, power, and the violence that is inherent within those two. No spoilers here, but I will compare the social commentary made in 'Boy Parts' to that which was made in Alissa Nutting's 'Tampa:' If you present only men as the villains, the violent ones, you are failing to fully humanize women as a gender. That's not to say (obviously) that there are glaring statistical differences in gendered violence -- I mean to say that by heralding one gender as only villains and vice versa, you continue to flatten another gender's nuance and depth. One of the most powerful aspects of the book to me (which interrogates this gender flattening) was how Irina would so easily have these men swooning and pining after her, and the whole time, she's just like, "DO YOU SEE ME? AS MORE THAN JUST A PAIR OF TITS? I AM ANGRY AND VIOLENT AND SOMETHING TO BE SCARED OF." Irina is so painfully aware that she is being manic-pixie-dream-girled and yet, as so many non-men can probably relate with, she feels like she is being so fucking obvious with presenting herself genuinely. Men just don't see past her corporal form, what she can do for them. This is just a stream of consciousness, but I love books that tackle tough topics and make me think!! and ponder! Thank you Eliza Clark! Can't wait for 'Penance' which comes out later this month : )
"I had a dream once, where I sat up in bed and left my body behind. And I rolled next to her -- to my body. I touched her skin. I kissed her lips, and they were soft, and mine, but cold and rubbery. Watching the video is like that dream; I know that's me. I know that's my body. But she isn't cold and rigid, she's pink in the face, and frantic, snapping photos, pinching and grabbing flesh like a greedy child. She gets to be there forever. Skinny and gorgeous and young, and I'm stuck out here. I'm stuck watching the video over and over again, rotting" (230-231).
Merged review:
4.5 stars from me and a long review incoming. Huge, ginormous trigger warning in this book for rape, sexual assault, eating disorders, and *a lot* of violence all around. OK! With that being said, let's get into it. This book truly has no dull moments. Whether it's the beginning of the novel, where we see our gloriously deranged protagonist Irina consume every drug under the sun and the smallest amount of food possible, or throughout the story where she directs kink and BDSM-oriented photoshoots with random men, I found that my mouth was (more often than not) left hanging open. A book with this seriously unhinged of a plot could have easily rested on those laurels alone -- pure entertainment, shock value, etc. But what really got me hooked into this was how Clark not only masterfully developed Irina's character, but how she then placed Irina seamlessly into the greater context of gender, power, and the violence that is inherent within those two. No spoilers here, but I will compare the social commentary made in 'Boy Parts' to that which was made in Alissa Nutting's 'Tampa:' If you present only men as the villains, the violent ones, you are failing to fully humanize women as a gender. That's not to say (obviously) that there are glaring statistical differences in gendered violence -- I mean to say that by heralding one gender as only villains and vice versa, you continue to flatten another gender's nuance and depth. One of the most powerful aspects of the book to me (which interrogates this gender flattening) was how Irina would so easily have these men swooning and pining after her, and the whole time, she's just like, "DO YOU SEE ME? AS MORE THAN JUST A PAIR OF TITS? I AM ANGRY AND VIOLENT AND SOMETHING TO BE SCARED OF." Irina is so painfully aware that she is being manic-pixie-dream-girled and yet, as so many non-men can probably relate with, she feels like she is being so fucking obvious with presenting herself genuinely. Men just don't see past her corporal form, what she can do for them. This is just a stream of consciousness, but I love books that tackle tough topics and make me think!! and ponder! Thank you Eliza Clark! Can't wait for 'Penance' which comes out later this month : )
"I had a dream once, where I sat up in bed and left my body behind. And I rolled next to her -- to my body. I touched her skin. I kissed her lips, and they were soft, and mine, but cold and rubbery. Watching the video is like that dream; I know that's me. I know that's my body. But she isn't cold and rigid, she's pink in the face, and frantic, snapping photos, pinching and grabbing flesh like a greedy child. She gets to be there forever. Skinny and gorgeous and young, and I'm stuck out here. I'm stuck watching the video over and over again, rotting" (230-231).
"I had a dream once, where I sat up in bed and left my body behind. And I rolled next to her -- to my body. I touched her skin. I kissed her lips, and they were soft, and mine, but cold and rubbery. Watching the video is like that dream; I know that's me. I know that's my body. But she isn't cold and rigid, she's pink in the face, and frantic, snapping photos, pinching and grabbing flesh like a greedy child. She gets to be there forever. Skinny and gorgeous and young, and I'm stuck out here. I'm stuck watching the video over and over again, rotting" (230-231).
Merged review:
4.5 stars from me and a long review incoming. Huge, ginormous trigger warning in this book for rape, sexual assault, eating disorders, and *a lot* of violence all around. OK! With that being said, let's get into it. This book truly has no dull moments. Whether it's the beginning of the novel, where we see our gloriously deranged protagonist Irina consume every drug under the sun and the smallest amount of food possible, or throughout the story where she directs kink and BDSM-oriented photoshoots with random men, I found that my mouth was (more often than not) left hanging open. A book with this seriously unhinged of a plot could have easily rested on those laurels alone -- pure entertainment, shock value, etc. But what really got me hooked into this was how Clark not only masterfully developed Irina's character, but how she then placed Irina seamlessly into the greater context of gender, power, and the violence that is inherent within those two. No spoilers here, but I will compare the social commentary made in 'Boy Parts' to that which was made in Alissa Nutting's 'Tampa:' If you present only men as the villains, the violent ones, you are failing to fully humanize women as a gender. That's not to say (obviously) that there are glaring statistical differences in gendered violence -- I mean to say that by heralding one gender as only villains and vice versa, you continue to flatten another gender's nuance and depth. One of the most powerful aspects of the book to me (which interrogates this gender flattening) was how Irina would so easily have these men swooning and pining after her, and the whole time, she's just like, "DO YOU SEE ME? AS MORE THAN JUST A PAIR OF TITS? I AM ANGRY AND VIOLENT AND SOMETHING TO BE SCARED OF." Irina is so painfully aware that she is being manic-pixie-dream-girled and yet, as so many non-men can probably relate with, she feels like she is being so fucking obvious with presenting herself genuinely. Men just don't see past her corporal form, what she can do for them. This is just a stream of consciousness, but I love books that tackle tough topics and make me think!! and ponder! Thank you Eliza Clark! Can't wait for 'Penance' which comes out later this month : )
"I had a dream once, where I sat up in bed and left my body behind. And I rolled next to her -- to my body. I touched her skin. I kissed her lips, and they were soft, and mine, but cold and rubbery. Watching the video is like that dream; I know that's me. I know that's my body. But she isn't cold and rigid, she's pink in the face, and frantic, snapping photos, pinching and grabbing flesh like a greedy child. She gets to be there forever. Skinny and gorgeous and young, and I'm stuck out here. I'm stuck watching the video over and over again, rotting" (230-231).