Reviews with content warning for Transphobia - Pageboy

Reviews tagging 'Transphobia'

Pageboy by Elliot Page

386 reviews

erinoco's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

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errinnnn's review against another edition

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slow-paced

1.0

Fell asleep for the last hour but there’s no way I’m rewinding it, that was awful.
Non linear narrative that was executed so terribly that you never know where abouts in time you are with Page, WAYYYYY too much talk about poo, an unbearable amount of detail about all the sex he has had and, considering Elliot Page is an actor, awful narration. The whole audiobook was read in a flat, monotone voice that made it impossible for me to get invested in what he was saying since it just sounded like one long drone. It feels cruel to critique someone’s life story so strongly but this book was in desperate need of a great editor and I think would have benefitted from a much later release date to fine tune any and all issues within it.

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_unknown_bibliomaniac_'s review against another edition

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challenging emotional

3.75

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espressoreads's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

I like how he broke up the memoir in to alternating chapters rather than all at once. Elliot is an excellent writer!! Grateful he chose to tell his story.

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makamano's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Not a perfect book, but so important. I’m so glad to have his experience, the beauty of it, the pain.

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roctothorpe's review against another edition

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challenging emotional sad medium-paced

3.0

This was my most anticipated memoir of the year, and it was alright.

The story is delivered in short essay vignettes, jumping back and forth from childhood to adulthood to adolescence. I didn't mind the non-linear style, though it was a bit confusing to follow the time jumps in audiobook format and the overall grouping of stories did not feel cohesive or intentional.

The writing has a very "on camera" feel, and reads in parts like a tell-all celebrity magazine. There are many stories of Elliot's past romantic relationships, but these were often reduced to recountings of the immediate events with little reflection on their long-term impacts on Elliot's life. I understand that there is a delicate line to walk in protecting the privacy of his partners, but these supporting characters in the narrative felt flatly rendered and I had a difficult time keeping them apart.

As a whole, Elliot's voice in this book feels deeply personal and yet weirdly removed. There is story after story of intense homophobia and sexual assault, each as graphic and unflinching as the last. With little added introspection, it felt like we were just rushing through all these traumatic events without taking the time to process or unpack anything.

The standout sections for me were the parts about Elliot's childhood and his relationship with his narcissistic father and abusive stepmother. It was gut-wrenching to read, and they had the self reflection and personal growth I wanted more of from the other chapters.

There are a lot of valuable stories within this memoir, but the actual execution left me feeling emotionally detached. I felt that the gravity of the topics discussed deserved tighter editing and more space for reflection. Despite the criticisms I have about the narrative choices, Elliot tells a compelling story about navigating queerness in the public eye. Though we have lived dramatically different lives, I still found parts of this memoir that resonated strongly with me. Worth the read, for sure, and I'm glad that Elliot could share his journey with us.

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