felishacb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Footnotes tell the story of the narrator of sorts who is translating and interpreting the tale. They are also dealing with a faceless entity who wants to control the translation and treats Jacks's transness with an otherness. These layers give Rosenberg the opportunity to comment on queerness, as well as class, colonialism, and power.
Another main character based on reality is Bess who in this book is an Asian sex worker. Bess offers a safe place for Jack and teaches him more about class revolution by sharing her own family's tragic story. Her lived experience could connect with Jack's own experience of class oppression (and queer repression) and inform him on how it intersects with racism.
Although it is fiction, this book serves as a powerful reminder that trans people (and people of color) have always been here and have always been the main characters in their stories even if their history is lost or never told.
Towards the last third of the novel, I did find myself not picking this up as much. But the authors voice and perspective kept me wanting to see how this story ended and what nuggets of truth they would share.
From the book: "All history should be the history of how we exceeded our own limits."
Graphic: Classism, Death, Blood, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Abandonment
Moderate: Racism, Kidnapping, Genocide, Confinement, Physical abuse, Torture, and Homophobia
Minor: Grief
ellenigrace's review against another edition
4.5
Spoiler
the collective group of queer editorsGraphic: Confinement, Death, Drug use, Dysphoria, Blood, Gore, Body horror, and Medical content
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Transphobia
caseythereader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Vomit, Xenophobia, Confinement, Death, Dysphoria, Classism, Alcohol, Gore, Racism, Colonisation, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Deadnaming, Grief, Murder, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Police brutality, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Excrement, and Violence
carbs666's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Medical content, Dysphoria, Alcohol, Confinement, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail, and Colonisation
Moderate: Death, Medical content, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Racism, and Transphobia
octopus_farmer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content
Moderate: Racism and Transphobia
perpetualpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Blood and Medical content
Moderate: Death, Racism, and Sexual content
Minor: Deadnaming and Vomit
bookishkoala's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Spoiler
It dissects capitalism at its beginning (1700s) and end (present) and talks about the history and importance of community and resistance in facing down colonialism and capitalism. I cried at the end.Graphic: Blood, Violence, Racism, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Transphobia and Deadnaming
tachyondecay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I took the manuscript because I could not help but take it once I realized it was trying to communicate something. Something just for us. And if you are reading this, then you know who I mean.… Even if I were saying … that this is a code, they will never be able to read it. There are some things you can see only through tears.
The moment I read those lines, I knew the “us” was referring to trans people. This is not just a book with trans characters and by a trans author; it is a text that comments on the need for a sense of community among trans people that acknowledges our existence throughout history. Voth believes the manuscript is a message to other trans people; he in turn attempts to find a way to safeguard and preserve that message.
Originally posted at Kara.Reviews.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Medical content, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexual content, and Transphobia
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, and Child abuse
Minor: Murder and Racial slurs
charlieleelee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
As the "editor" notes, it's clearly written for a certain group of people.
Graphic: Homophobia, Police brutality, Racism, and Transphobia
Moderate: Blood, Death, Medical content, and Xenophobia
jameslyons's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Ambitious and almost overwhelming at times. It took a lot of faith in the author for me to get through the wilder parts that didn't make sense until everything Did. Thank god it all pulled together in the end. I remain annoyed at the heavy academic bent, but that's a personal pet peeve, and scholarly sycophants will likely adore that aspect. Everyone else, my advice is to just ignore and skim at will. The rest of the story contains So Much aside from that.
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Genocide, Slavery, and Vomit
Content found within, which storygraph doesn't have specific tags for yet: graphic descriptions of public executions (hangings), murder, corpse multination, a VERY graphic surgical scene (which could be skipped by the reader), and medical abuse. That would normally be enough for me to give this just 1* or not finish, but in the context of this book, I valued all of the nasty bits as much as the rest of the story.