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campgender's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Fatphobia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Murder
kaki4forks's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Biphobia, Body shaming, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Dementia
klsreads's review against another edition
5.0
I've never read anything quite like this - I loved the vignette narrative structure. The book moved quickly because most sections were short. A couple of the tropes dragged on for me/didn't hit 100%, but I was enthralled and could hardly put it down. A few standouts for me - "Dream House as Deja Vu" (x3), "Dream House as Queer Villainy" (!!!), "Dream House as Bluebeard", "Dream House as the River Lethe", "Dream House as Choose Your Own Adventure" ...... ok, I have to stop or I'm going to quote half of this work.
Even more wild: I was in Iowa City as an undergrad during the events of this book. Did I see Carmen and the Woman from the Dream House at a coffee shop, at Obama's speech, in a bookstore? It makes me shiver, the ways people suffer out of view.
Brilliant. Carmen Maria Machado is an absolute force and a genius of prose and innovative structure. I HIGHLY recommend this book, but mind the CW's. Machado doesn't shy away from the gore at the heart of her story.
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Gun violence, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
regent_ace's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Medical content, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Biphobia, Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Bullying, Gun violence, Dementia, Stalking, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence, Racism, Dementia, and Pregnancy
hello_lovely13's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Homophobia and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Racism
saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition
4.5
Abuse among queer women is often overlooked and this book seeks remedy that with its portrayal of a real relationship and anecdotes about how queer people are expected to be better than cishet people in order to deserve rights, even though in reality we're human and humans are messy. I liked how Machado didn't just stick to her own story and also discussed the history of abuse cases between women and how lesbian rights movements dealt with it, adding to the educational element of the book.
The prose really elevates the story, making it feel more stream of conscious. This helped highlight the emotions one feels when dealing with abuse as Machado shows how she feels rather than tells. For example, Machado never refers to her abuser by name but rather as "the woman in the dream house." This makes her abuser feel inhuman which is a very real feeling victims can have and ties the abuse to a specific place which showcases how PTSD is often tied to physical places. Along with the stream of consciousness, the story is disjointed purposely. Leaping from memories about the relationship to synopses of TV show episodes that work as metaphors on abuse to history about queer women and abuse. This worked well for the vibes but at times made the narrative difficult to follow and understand.
In the Dream House is going on my list of powerful memoirs I'd recommend and by far one of the most creative I've read! I'd especially recommend it for people interested in learning about domestic abuse (especially what it's like between queer women) and the trauma it causes.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, and Lesbophobia
mengzhenreads's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexism, and Gaslighting
Minor: Racism
sapphicmuscaria's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail