A review by bbboeken
Mrs Caliban by Rachel Ingalls
5.0
Chances are, that if you enjoyed Marian Engel's _Bear_ (and most definitely the 2017 movie _The Shape of Water_ by Guillermo del Toro), you will also enjoy reading this book by Rachel Ingalls. The premise is quite similar, and it requires the same open-mindedness of its reader (even though I behold that open-mindedness as a given for any reader, rather than a prerequisite). If you prefer to take things all too literally or even at face value, you will not like this book one little bit.
And please, if you buy the same edition as I did, do skip the introduction by Irenosen Okojie. Not only is it spoiler-ridden, but Okojie also insists on labelling this novella as feminist, which is as fashionable as it is unnecessary. If you want to read up on Rachel Ingalls, I can recommend the 2019 article by Lidija Haas in The New Yorker, _Something in the Water_.
I can't wait to read more by Ingalls.
And please, if you buy the same edition as I did, do skip the introduction by Irenosen Okojie. Not only is it spoiler-ridden, but Okojie also insists on labelling this novella as feminist, which is as fashionable as it is unnecessary. If you want to read up on Rachel Ingalls, I can recommend the 2019 article by Lidija Haas in The New Yorker, _Something in the Water_.
I can't wait to read more by Ingalls.