A review by honey_buns
Bunny, by Mona Awad
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.25
Bizarre and somehow compelling; this was a fast-paced read that I couldn’t put down (finished it in less than 2 days)! The writing is outstanding. For example, the detail given to the Bunnies from Samantha’s perspective.
I’ve seen this compared to Heathers and while that is what made me interested initially, I have to say that it’s not a great comparison. Definitely in the individual and group dynamics between Samantha and the Bunnies, but I think the parallels start and stop there. And in that sense you could also easily compare this to Mean Girls.
I did find Samantha to be an honest character, as in she seems like a real, complex person; not in the sense that she tells the truth cause she be lyin’ quite a bit. However, I didn’t find her likable. I don’t want to spoil it so I’ll just say it is easier to sympathize with her than it is to like her.
I don’t like how this has been touted as a groundbreaking feminist piece, I’ll explain why in the spoiler below if you’re curious. It is still enjoyable to read as long as you don’t believe it’s going to be feminist in nature.
Something I adored is the foreshadowing, I am a sucker for getting to a big plot point and realizing all the foreshadowing that came before it. It makes reading it a second time fun for me. I do highly recommend it, but I don’t think it’ll be everyone’s cup of tea as it can be confusing and a bit pretentious at times.
Spoiler
how initially she doesn’t quite view them as real people, going so far as to only call them by nicknames like Cupcake and Creepy Doll, which you may notice are objects not people, but even the “Creepy Doll” she equates that character too is beautiful and desirable; because though she claims to hate them she has also placed them on a pedestal. But as we progress through the story her opinion changes and as does her descriptions, I won’t ruin it by saying moreI’ve seen this compared to Heathers and while that is what made me interested initially, I have to say that it’s not a great comparison. Definitely in the individual and group dynamics between Samantha and the Bunnies, but I think the parallels start and stop there. And in that sense you could also easily compare this to Mean Girls.
I did find Samantha to be an honest character, as in she seems like a real, complex person; not in the sense that she tells the truth cause she be lyin’ quite a bit. However, I didn’t find her likable. I don’t want to spoil it so I’ll just say it is easier to sympathize with her than it is to like her.
I don’t like how this has been touted as a groundbreaking feminist piece, I’ll explain why in the spoiler below if you’re curious. It is still enjoyable to read as long as you don’t believe it’s going to be feminist in nature.
Spoiler
1.) the implications from the jump that the Bunnies are vapid-airheads and Samantha’s justification for this boiling down to the fact that they indulge in femininity. 2.) the “monstrous experiments” that the Bunnies are creating are just men. Literally their idealized fantasy version of men, but they don’t call them “men”, no no no they’re above “men”, they’re making “drafts/hybrids/darlings” the last one I’m sure is meant to be a play on the literary expression to “kill your darlings” but give me a break, please. Having the characters claim that they’re being strong feminists because the way make men, but don’t call them men is just doing nothing. And if the author was just trying to poke fun at women like that, then it’s still misogynistic. Either way, don’t like that… 3.) Max. seriously a man that Samantha created is what finally undoes the Bunnies. You’ll notice when/if you read it that Max is basically a male version of Samantha and he does all the things that she is too afraid to do. (Like dating Ava or destroying the Bunnies) Way to blatantly say woman weak and incompetent, need big strong man to fix her problems. The only small consolation is that Sam finally gets a backbone I guess, but she exclusively uses it to put the Bunnies down one more time so it kinda feels like she didn’t grow just stopped lyingSomething I adored is the foreshadowing, I am a sucker for getting to a big plot point and realizing all the foreshadowing that came before it. It makes reading it a second time fun for me. I do highly recommend it, but I don’t think it’ll be everyone’s cup of tea as it can be confusing and a bit pretentious at times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Blood, Animal death, Violence, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Misogyny and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
the drug use is someone being drugged, they willingly take something, but they are kinda pressured to and they are told it’s medicine
the self harm is described and speculated about after the fact, but we do not get a description of how it’s done
the misogyny and psychosis are more like underlying themes than something that is explicitly talked about in the book. You won’t be able to read it without noticing, but again the characters don’t talk about it really.