generalalarm's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This novel is auto-fiction, reading a lot like a memoir. It's a first-person narration of a depressed, self-destructive woman's flight from her husband and newborn daughter. The novel explores her family history through letters her mother wrote and a chapter on her father's time in the Manson family cult. The book contrasts the poverty, addiction, and tragedy with which she grew up, with her own discomfort and unhappiness in her privileged life. The prose is somehow both pared back and straight to the point while making gorgeous use of lush words and highly specific descriptions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Abandonment, Grief, Mental illness, and Pregnancy
Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault
whimsylindsey's review
dark
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Suicide, and Abandonment
teresareads's review
I loved the weirdness of the beginning, but it gets tedious fast. The Manson section is hard to follow, and I got bogged down there. And, although I can appreciate the value of messy women telling their stories, these stories seem to be dominating literary fiction today, and I'm kind of bored with them. And the meandering nature of this narrative doesn't help much. There's nothing here, aside from the title, to keep me engaged.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse
Moderate: Abandonment and Death of parent
Minor: Suicide
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