Reviews tagging 'Dysphoria'

Bellies by Nicola Dinan

17 reviews

oz2021's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Infidelity

yleavy's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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

2.75

Some sweet moments, and I can see why people like this book. The characters all have moments of charm in that “uni student who thinks they are quirky” sort of way. The dialogue felt like it was coming from an afterschool special, with the characters using therapy words or helping each other reach a profound revelation in every conversation. Without the tense changes, the characters’ POVs would be difficult to tell apart, and the analogies were often more distracting than fitting. Examples include “our tongues shook hands” and “my heart grows thicker”. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Deadnaming, Drug use, Eating disorder, Transphobia, Vomit, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

e11en's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Drug use, Mental illness, Transphobia, Grief, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Eating disorder, Car accident, and Death of parent

signeskov's review

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria

Moderate: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Sexual harassment

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Definitely need more stories about the trans experience, but this story was told so poorly that I hated every minute of it. There are so few books on trans people that I felt like I had to finish it. Ordinarily, I would’ve DNFd it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Dysphoria

shortstackz's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A beautifully written, bittersweet love story of the evolving experience of queerness. It's an introspective literary fiction that follows our two main characters: Tom and Ming. I cannot emphasize enough how beautiful the prose is, and how kind the perspective is to each of the characters as we explore how queer couples navigate and question one partner's transition journey.

Ming's character development across the whole book brings me so much joy for her, as she navigates her gender identity and finds her playwriter voice. I loved the added characterization of Ming being an immigrant from a country that would deny her existence, and discusses the very real inability to return to her home country (Malaysia) as herself. Ming brings up a lot of logistics of being a trans person, particularly a trans immigrant, that many cis-people (myself included) have had the privilege to not notice. 

In contrast we also see Tom's perspective, which I think is really valuable to see how a cis-partner might cope with their partner transitioning during the relationship. Tom identifies as a gay man, and that complicates his relationship with Ming when she begins to transition. I found sitting in Tom's head really interesting to see how he navigates his love for Ming, and his attraction towards masculine features.  

Ming and Tom love each other so much, and the bittersweet journey through Ming's transition is so beautifully complicated and heart-wrenching. At no point did I think either character wanted to deny Ming her gender identity, but love is more complicated than gender alone. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria

Moderate: Deadnaming and Death of parent

Minor: Deportation

alexgo's review against another edition

challenging

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Transphobia, and Grief

Minor: Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Pandemic/Epidemic

savvylit's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• 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

Bellies is a tender - yet messy - literary love story. Love consistently endures in this novel, despite a myriad of challenges. And it's not only romantic love that endures in this story. Bellies has some of the sweetest and most genuine moments of platonic love that I have ever experienced in literature. I loved Ming and Tom's friends for their devotion and ease with one another. In many ways, Bellies is also an ode to chosen family.

As I read, Dinan's writing reminded me quite a bit of Sally Rooney's work. Like in Rooney's novels, the relationships in Bellies are complex, the characters are vulnerable, and they're all discovering who they are and who they want to be. If you're a Rooney fan, you really cannot miss Bellies.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Transphobia, Grief, and Dysphoria

joensign's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Transphobia, Grief, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Death, Eating disorder, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Drug use, Infidelity, Car accident, and Death of parent

serendipitysbooks's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

 Bellies is the story of a relationship that developed between Tom and Ming, two gay men, and the challenges it faced when Ming realised she was a woman and transitioned. I found this book to be tender, thoughtful and nuanced, with no villains and no cliched easy answers. Just two people who loved each other but struggled when the truth of who they both were no longer fitted together neatly. Beautifully done. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Grief, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Death and Car accident