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fepope's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was beautiful and haunting. I usually read e-books but decided to get a physical copy and I am so glad I did. This book is marked up with highlighted lines that read like straight poetry. Dizz Tate did such an impactful and delicate job with the heavy topics (Content Warning for Brutes: CSA, mentions of animal (insect, technically) cruelty, and drug/alcohol abuse. There are likely more that I am not mentioning, so please look for a more detailed warning and take care of yourself.) This book is definitely meant to be read in a slow and purposeful way, and I'd argue that it will take me multiple reads to explore everything I wish within these girls' lives. Expect to be confused to most of the book, have a light-bulb moment towards the end, and to sit back after the last page confused again. I think those who disliked it because they didn't "get it" should retry with the understanding that THAT is the point. A gang of 13-year-old girls will only ever truly make sense to other 13-year-old girls, even when they don't even know themselves yet. Reading this book is like having minuscule, insignificant fragments of my young self come alive again.
TL;DR: Weird Girlhood at It's Greatest, Proceed Slowly!
TL;DR: Weird Girlhood at It's Greatest, Proceed Slowly!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Drug use, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Grief
_meganrose's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Beautiful cover, and that’s the only solid good thing I can say. The storyline seemed lost and I was not a fan of the writing style. Didn’t know what was going on the majority of the time while reading this. The epitome of no plot, just vibes. And I still am not even sure what those vibes are other than teenage girls that seriously need therapy and not in a quirky way. This read reminded me to never judge a book by its cover.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer
boliv3's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
reads like a fever dream. dark and uncomfortable, but kind of all over the place plot wise. it’s a sad coming-of-age story though i’m not sure i fully understand what happened. everyone was unhinged. Reminded me of Earthlings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Sexual violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
catmac91's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
lagaialettrice's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic friendship
savvylit's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
4.0
The collective perspective? Impeccable. The Central Florida setting as character? Humid and palpable. The mysteriousness and obsession? Realistic.
Brutes is a delightful book that is thematically and structurally in conversation with Eugenides' The Virgin Suicides. Teen girls are the central obsession. Readers are only allowed to get to know said girls as far as what is witnessed directly by a group of younger kids in the neighborhood; in Brutes' case, the collective witnesses are also girls themselves.
The only reason this novel isn't five stars for me is that I felt like some of the mysterious elements of this story needed to be better developed. Just when something creepy would happen or begin to happen, there was a jump in scenery. I just wanted fewer loose threads by the time I finished Brutes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Sexism, and Sexual violence
seventhswan's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I've seen other reviewers describe this as a "no plot, just vibes" book, but I thought there was actually a very clear storyline! It was creative and nuanced, reminding me of Stewart O'Nan's Ocean State and, as was clearly intended, The Virgin Suicides. That's not to say the vibes weren't immaculate - a sort of "pretty horror" - and Tate is an extremely talented descriptive writer who made my skin crawl at times with her imagery. I thought the shared narration worked extremely well throughout, but especially in making the conclusion of the novel extremely impactful. I cried multiple times.
This would have been the perfect book for me, ticking all the boxes - well-written, evocative, personally meaningful, distinctive characters - had it not then relied onthe existence of an actual monster at the end... magical realism strikes again. Sex traffickers and child neglect are monstrous enough! Introducing fantastical elements cheapened these very real issues a little for me.
This would have been the perfect book for me, ticking all the boxes - well-written, evocative, personally meaningful, distinctive characters - had it not then relied on
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, and Toxic friendship
savannnah_reads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This was a strange read because I simultaneously enjoyed the way the author describes girlhood and the experiences that seem to transcend location and background, yet I still spent most of this book very ready for it to be over.
The story being written in first-person plural was really interesting. I’ve never read a book that utilizes that style, but it made the narrative more interesting to hear chunks of the plot from the POV of “we” and then swap to individual POVs set in the future. I think it really embodied the experience of being a young girl terrified of standing out in a bad way; just wanting to belong.
You should read this book if you are fascinated by girlhood, repressed memories from childhood/moments from childhood we didn’t understand at the time and are still left wondering about, & tense and slightly manipulative relationships with moms. Oh, and if you enjoyed books like Bunny and Ripe.
//
“Eddie’s torso is a miracle to us. And we don’t even believe in miracles”
“We would not be born out of sweetness. We would be born out of rage.”
“We think of our mothers when we love them the most. Which is always just after we hate them the most”
“Now I think the only way some men know how to love a woman is to humiliate her”
“People seem to see warmth in me, even when I offer none. Maybe if I was thinner, it would be easier. But it seems to me sometimes that a woman with flesh is a woman who must always be grateful. People don’t hesitate around me. I’m always being asked for favors, and causing offense when I say no.”
“Our mothers call us brutes when they want us to feel bad. It is what they call men they do not like, like our dads”
“We felt foul and fatherly and afraid of ourselves. We tried to make ourselves small. We were coiled up, but we were not broken. And we knew our mothers’ idea of goodness was not measured by morals, but by how much noise we made. And we quickly grew tired of trying to be good in their way.”
“Leaving was glorious until I realized there was no one left to talk to about it”
“He looks like someone returning for a dinner they will not have to clean up”
The story being written in first-person plural was really interesting. I’ve never read a book that utilizes that style, but it made the narrative more interesting to hear chunks of the plot from the POV of “we” and then swap to individual POVs set in the future. I think it really embodied the experience of being a young girl terrified of standing out in a bad way; just wanting to belong.
You should read this book if you are fascinated by girlhood, repressed memories from childhood/moments from childhood we didn’t understand at the time and are still left wondering about, & tense and slightly manipulative relationships with moms. Oh, and if you enjoyed books like Bunny and Ripe.
//
“Eddie’s torso is a miracle to us. And we don’t even believe in miracles”
“We would not be born out of sweetness. We would be born out of rage.”
“We think of our mothers when we love them the most. Which is always just after we hate them the most”
“Now I think the only way some men know how to love a woman is to humiliate her”
“People seem to see warmth in me, even when I offer none. Maybe if I was thinner, it would be easier. But it seems to me sometimes that a woman with flesh is a woman who must always be grateful. People don’t hesitate around me. I’m always being asked for favors, and causing offense when I say no.”
“Our mothers call us brutes when they want us to feel bad. It is what they call men they do not like, like our dads”
“We felt foul and fatherly and afraid of ourselves. We tried to make ourselves small. We were coiled up, but we were not broken. And we knew our mothers’ idea of goodness was not measured by morals, but by how much noise we made. And we quickly grew tired of trying to be good in their way.”
“Leaving was glorious until I realized there was no one left to talk to about it”
“He looks like someone returning for a dinner they will not have to clean up”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
brinnavirginia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Classism