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A review by jcinf
Stray City by Chelsey Johnson
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
For the most part, I really enjoyed this book. I loved the complexity of characters and the uniqueness of the plot. I loved the insight into the Queer Portland scene in the late 90s.
My main complaint is the biphobia. Andrea had significant internalized biophobia herself. My thought is, yes, characters *can* be problematic. But it went unaddressed. There was never an acknowledgment of the problematic nature of the comments that were made. And as I am just starting to lean into my bi identity, I was a little shocked that some (yes, I know, I said SOME) lesbians really have such an intense dislike for bi women.
Here’s a spoiler if you want to be aware of this scene going into the book:
exerpt from pages 181 and 182: “I couldn’t even say [the word bisexual]… We all knew girls who were bisexual. Or whatever. Girls who we thought were one of us then went for a roll in the hay with a boy. Which was fine. We just didn’t necessarily want to know about it… Because to us, bisexual was the earnest white girl in your women’s studies class who had a nice boyfriend and wanted to clock in a little more oppression... Bisexual was the way celebrities avoided it, or faked it. Or couples in the bar or the classifieds who wanted a third. Or women who remained happily married or boyfriended a guy who was okay with their getting with another woman, or who just felt emotionally open to the possibility, who thought they could get into if they gave it a shot, like hot yoga.”
You would think one marginalized group wouldn’t harbor such hate for another marginalized group. I mean, really? Lesbian pick-me’s is what I got from it. Plus, it’s hard to tell if the characters are biphobic or if the author is. Maybe it’s just meant to reflect the attitude of the time. But to me, it didn’t feel like commentary about the bi-erasure in the 90s. It could’ve gone that direction, but the disdain for bi women continued for almost a full page. It felt like the author airing her issues with bi women instead of making meaningful commentary about the time period.
It didn’t put me off from finishing the book, but it did dock some points for me.
Otherwise, I really enjoyed this read.
My main complaint is the biphobia. Andrea had significant internalized biophobia herself. My thought is, yes, characters *can* be problematic. But it went unaddressed. There was never an acknowledgment of the problematic nature of the comments that were made. And as I am just starting to lean into my bi identity, I was a little shocked that some (yes, I know, I said SOME) lesbians really have such an intense dislike for bi women.
Here’s a spoiler if you want to be aware of this scene going into the book:
You would think one marginalized group wouldn’t harbor such hate for another marginalized group. I mean, really? Lesbian pick-me’s is what I got from it. Plus, it’s hard to tell if the characters are biphobic or if the author is. Maybe it’s just meant to reflect the attitude of the time. But to me, it didn’t feel like commentary about the bi-erasure in the 90s. It could’ve gone that direction, but the disdain for bi women continued for almost a full page. It felt like the author airing her issues with bi women instead of making meaningful commentary about the time period.
It didn’t put me off from finishing the book, but it did dock some points for me.
Otherwise, I really enjoyed this read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia
Moderate: Religious bigotry and Pregnancy
Minor: Abortion