Scan barcode
A review by fayetree
Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
3.0
yet another reread of a middle school favorite.
there really is just something so beautiful to me about reading books about, not only outcast, but very specifically ‘weird’ kids. those who are quiet and shy and who have deep interests in things others don’t understand and who DEVOUR those interests. whether through creating/reading fanfiction, fanart, participating in online communities, and dressing up and collecting merchandise. it’s just so special to live in the eyes of these characters and to see them viewed as people and to be able to see how it’s not just a movie or a book, it’s something that can be so meaningful and change their lives for the better. so many people find the courage to go on through different pieces of media and the communities that come with them and they’re ridiculed and made to feel ‘weird’ for their interests, so reading about characters who are able to bond over something like that is so real to me.
clearly i am one of those ‘weird’ kids who sat at the back of class obsessing over books & characters who still mean everything to me 5 years later.
i so often read about certified ‘cool girls’ and i love that, obviously or i wouldn’t consume so much media recommended as such, but none of these characters are ‘cool’, they’re not even weird in a cool way, they’re the kids who get mocked and who eat lunch in the library because the cafeteria is too loud. and that’s so real to me!!!! i feel so annoying being like “im weird and unsettling” (like who am i, judhead???) but it is the truth, people in school never even attempted to talk to me and more than once i was referred to as ‘the quiet girl’ and people who knew me since 5th grade would gasp at the sound of my voice as if they thought i couldn’t speak. even at 19 i haven’t transitioned into some older cooler version of myself, i am the same girl I’ve always been, except now i love fashion, but no amount of vintage dress can conceal my undiagnosed autism!!! so i will always appreciate book characters who are certifiably uncool and who don’t care to be cool.
all that being said, im conflicted on this book. its not perfect, there were things that annoyed me, and i wouldn’t read it again, but it definitely is something i would recommend to middle schoolers who feel on the outside of their peers. its so good to see fangirl culture not be ostracized and i understand why, as a 12 year old girl with intense anxiety, this book meant a lot to me. so yay! fun!!!
books like this and ‘radio silence’ are so real 2 me!!!!!
there really is just something so beautiful to me about reading books about, not only outcast, but very specifically ‘weird’ kids. those who are quiet and shy and who have deep interests in things others don’t understand and who DEVOUR those interests. whether through creating/reading fanfiction, fanart, participating in online communities, and dressing up and collecting merchandise. it’s just so special to live in the eyes of these characters and to see them viewed as people and to be able to see how it’s not just a movie or a book, it’s something that can be so meaningful and change their lives for the better. so many people find the courage to go on through different pieces of media and the communities that come with them and they’re ridiculed and made to feel ‘weird’ for their interests, so reading about characters who are able to bond over something like that is so real to me.
clearly i am one of those ‘weird’ kids who sat at the back of class obsessing over books & characters who still mean everything to me 5 years later.
i so often read about certified ‘cool girls’ and i love that, obviously or i wouldn’t consume so much media recommended as such, but none of these characters are ‘cool’, they’re not even weird in a cool way, they’re the kids who get mocked and who eat lunch in the library because the cafeteria is too loud. and that’s so real to me!!!! i feel so annoying being like “im weird and unsettling” (like who am i, judhead???) but it is the truth, people in school never even attempted to talk to me and more than once i was referred to as ‘the quiet girl’ and people who knew me since 5th grade would gasp at the sound of my voice as if they thought i couldn’t speak. even at 19 i haven’t transitioned into some older cooler version of myself, i am the same girl I’ve always been, except now i love fashion, but no amount of vintage dress can conceal my undiagnosed autism!!! so i will always appreciate book characters who are certifiably uncool and who don’t care to be cool.
all that being said, im conflicted on this book. its not perfect, there were things that annoyed me, and i wouldn’t read it again, but it definitely is something i would recommend to middle schoolers who feel on the outside of their peers. its so good to see fangirl culture not be ostracized and i understand why, as a 12 year old girl with intense anxiety, this book meant a lot to me. so yay! fun!!!
books like this and ‘radio silence’ are so real 2 me!!!!!