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A review by elenahasashelf
The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This one was a page turner. The writing style made it easy to just fly through. And everyone on here listing it as “dark” was ooooof not wrong at all!
I really appreciated Silas’ POV and its explicit transness, autism and anxiety through the language of the time period. A lot of Silas’ internal insecure, questioning or self-destructive dialogue in regards to his gender and anxiety are things I’ve found in my own brain, and it was hard to read at times but nice to feel seen. I liked Silas’ reflections on his gender and autism being inseparably linked in his experience. It was all explored in nuanced ways that felt relevant to how Silas was navigating the plot and other characters and never felt shoehorned in. The book’s exploration of how societies past and present oppress anyone who’s Other was effective in that way.
That said, oooooooooofit was hard to watch Silas and his classmates being punished over and over in the worst possible ways! The middle lagged a tad for me because it felt like I was just watching Silas be tortured and not seeing him be able to counter it yet.
I absolutely loved Daphne and the T4T romance! She was such a vividly drawn character even though we get relatively little time with her. It made me so happy having Silas find a love that makes him feel known. I also loved Mary and her relationship with Frances. It’s giving Felicity in the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, mean blonde Victorian lesbians club
This wasn’t my fave book of the year but I really liked its exploration of trans experience in a past time. It reminded me to think of all the people in the past who couldn’t live as themselves, or who did against incredible odds. I loved having such loud and proud trans representation with characters who were often limited in how much they could express their genders. I think that’s as important to show as trans characters who are modern, out and thriving are. Always trans, baby. Always been here.
I really appreciated Silas’ POV and its explicit transness, autism and anxiety through the language of the time period. A lot of Silas’ internal insecure, questioning or self-destructive dialogue in regards to his gender and anxiety are things I’ve found in my own brain, and it was hard to read at times but nice to feel seen. I liked Silas’ reflections on his gender and autism being inseparably linked in his experience. It was all explored in nuanced ways that felt relevant to how Silas was navigating the plot and other characters and never felt shoehorned in. The book’s exploration of how societies past and present oppress anyone who’s Other was effective in that way.
That said, oooooooooof
This wasn’t my fave book of the year but I really liked its exploration of trans experience in a past time. It reminded me to think of all the people in the past who couldn’t live as themselves, or who did against incredible odds. I loved having such loud and proud trans representation with characters who were often limited in how much they could express their genders. I think that’s as important to show as trans characters who are modern, out and thriving are. Always trans, baby. Always been here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Sexism, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, and Vomit