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readerette's review against another edition
4.0
I found this an intriguing rumination on identity and how it develops, though as a Midwesterner, I don't agree with most of the generalizations the author makes about Midwesterners. I do believe those generalizations are how people outside the Midwest often think of us, but I don't believe they're factually true or that most Midwesterners consider them true.
Moderate: Alcoholism, Biphobia, Homophobia, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Colonisation, and Dysphoria
katsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
"I wonder, sometimes, if I believed in God, would I still feel so afraid?"
"In a small midwestern town, darkness gets buried like a secret."
"So often, though, the things we hope to be true about ourselves and the things we really want are incongruous."
"...bucking a traditional system is never easy."
"It takes a great deal of privilege--by way of money, education, and access--to live within one's ideals."
"...there are no good guys or bad guys. There is only us."
I really enjoyed this collection of essays. Faliveno's writing was really amazing. I liked how the essays were split up into sections. The sections made it easy to pause when I needed to since the essay's were a little longer than I liked. I also liked how the different sections tied together larger themes within each essay, however, sometimes the sections could be a little disjointed. I expected these essays to focus more on gender and sexuality, and while that is definitely a large focus of many of the essays, they explore much more than that. I identified with a lot of the author's conversation on what it's like to grow up as a woman in the Midwest. In addition to midwestern culture, gender and sexuality, the text also explored themes like motherhood, grief, cultural expectations, gun culture and one essay about moths that, I have to admit, I didn't quite understand.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Pedophilia and Abortion
ashlyn's review against another edition
3.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Minor: Drug use, Eating disorder, Gun violence, and Abortion
mariahsnerdynotes's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Sexual assault, and Grief
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Abortion