Reviews

Very weird and cool. At some points confusing but nothing that can’t be cleared up by a second reading of the passage. I will be thinking about the underground drug world a lot more because of it.

kpkulski's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

Sometimes I read a book and it's the story that stands out, or even the characters, but in Dermaphoria it is the author who stands out and Clevenger is right there on every page. His observations are so damn sharp. I never wanted to read quickly over a sentence in case I missed a brilliant tidbit. For me, this book isn't just about the character, or about what is or is not real, it was about how we all formulate our ideas of reality and then act accordingly and how much power the people around us have in influencing that idea of reality.
This is a gritty and personally enriching work that doesn't pull any punches.

mfichtel's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

chrisjm's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

I really wanted to like this book especially since I enjoyed [book: The Contortionist's Handbook]. [author: Craig Clevenger] has an interesting voice, but I feel like he didn't reach his potential with this one. The story was too simplistic for the language he was using. I found the entire read hard to navigate but then when I think back, I'm amazed that so little actually happened. I'll keep reading Clevenger's works and just hope that this was just a typical sophomoric effort that was trying to hard to live up to the freshman hype.

fromtheyellowchair's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

This book absolutely blew my mind. I'd already read The Contortionists Handbook so I was familiar with Clevenger's style but I still was still really surprised by this book. The plot itself is interesting but the language is what hooked me- its somehow beautiful and gritty at the same time. The first and last lines have really stuck with me.
I did have some trouble remembering who was who within the story, but I guess that only makes sense since its told from the point of an amnesiac.

amrjamil's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

الرواية هلوسة ممتعة توقظ رغبة مشتعلة لمعرفة أحداث أكثر .. ورغم ذلك قاطعتها عدة مرات
يوم أو يومين وأعود فهي رواية مرهقة فعلا .. (أحمد خالد توفيق) عبقري التراجم .. رغم أني معترض على قراءة ترجمة ولكن العلاقة التي يصنعها أحمد خالد توفيق بيني وبينه وبين الكاتب والأبطال كأننا جميعا في مكان تحت سقف واحد تجعلة شديد التميز في الترجمة ..
أعجبتني فواصل هلوسة فلسفية التي تظهر أحيانا مثل الصفحة التي فيها "الفارق بين شخص حر ومحكوم عليه بالأعدام لحظة تردد واحدة أو بةصتين من باب الحمام المغلق" ..النهاية ليست الأفضل على الأطلاق كنت متوقع شيئا أقوى

pghbekka's review against another edition

Go to review page

1.0

I thought Clevenger's debut novel was absolutely fantastic! Engaging, inventive, insert superlative here! So I think I was even more disappointed in this sophomore effort than I might have been if I'd never read him before. To be fair, this novel is one of those riddle types (think Memento), that I absolutely abhor. If you loved Memento, you'd probably love this.

More...