From Bunny to Pretty Girls all the way to My Dark Vanessa, let's talk about reading during this quarantine...
Soon after this quarantine started in mid-March (I live in Florida, for reference) I signed up for a library card for the first time in years. I had been thinking about it for a while and I looked up how to do it and signed up, simple as that. Just signed up on my local library's website and then nabbed a digital card the very next day.
Let me tell you: I have read some books! Four to be exact. From one involving freaky experiments done in a kitschy college setting to a first person novel about a woman recounting abuse by a teacher, I've upped my reading quota for the first time in a long while.
Let me preference by sending a grateful shoutout to Libby for helping me to set smart reading goals by allowing me access to many free library books from their reading apps with time frames in which to return and borrow books as well several to simply put on hold until they're ready for you. Ya'll should get on that!
One of the first books I read was Bunny by Mona Awad, a book set at an artsy college where a student named Samantha gets entrenched in bizarre experiments when she joins up with a twee group of girls who call themselves by the nickname of Bunny. Sounds simple enough and it is. It's a shorter read for anyone who doesn't wanna beat their brains to death with too much without having to subject themselves to something dumb and yet is smarter than it actually sounds. Give it a shot. I promise, you'll love it!
My second read was of the much darker variety (in a twisted, this-cannot-possibly-get-much-worse kinda way) and when you hear that it's by an indie author by the name of Karin Slaughter, you can hazard a guess as to what you're in for. The book is Pretty Girls and I didn't think I would enjoy it and have it fuck me up at the same time. The plot is about two grown, estranged sisters, Claire and Lydia, who's big sister Julia disappeared twenty years before and well, any more from me would just spoil it so I'll just stop there. The plot jumps back and forth between past and present as well the third person POVs of the two adult sisters in the modern day and their late father's years before. This book is what I would label a doozy and the biggest sociopath couldn't tell me any different. Though, I'll tell you this, if you cannot handle reading about graphic depictions of crime, about manipulation, gaslighting, and/or dysfunctional relationships and family dynamics... skip this. Just skip it. Read Bunny and laugh a little while being grossed out just for the hell of it but, for the love of potatoes, skip it! That is all.
My third foray into becoming a full-blown adult reader was - dun daddah dah - Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng, which was, I admit, a smoky breath of air compared to my first two reads. I was neither amused and eeked out at the same time nor was I made a third party to endless trauma. I simply was exasperated, compelled by, and made to like a host of individuals who are as flawed as any other human being. Domestic drama at it's finest, this tells the tale of two different family units: The modern, nuclear Richardsons, with matriarch Elena leading the charge with her husband Bill complete with Lexie, the popular oldest, Trip, a smirky jock, the sensitive, quiet Moody, and is rounded out by the youngest, rebellious Izzy. The newbies of their Shaker Heights enclave are Mia Warren, a nomadic artist with seemingly no roots to speak of and her teenage daughter, Pearl, who's as intelligent as she is naïve and sweet. There's also a plotline concerning Mia's co-worker that involves arguments about biology versus acquired parental love but, I'll leave it there. Read this. Trust me.
Fourth time's the charm! I mean... I don't know. It could be. Moving on. Moving onto the book that left me nauseous and feasting on beautiful, wordy prose all at once sometimes. The book in question is Kate Elizabeth Russell's My Dark Vanessa, which is complete and utter bananas. It flings itself back and forth between present day in 2017 where 30-something Vanessa Wye is confronted with the knowledge that her former teacher, Jacob Strane, could have possibly sexually abused an ex-student and is forced to think about what side she's on and what she believes is the truth based on her own history as well as back in 2000 where the then 15-year-old engaged - from her own POV - in an affair with Strane, who was her own teacher at the time. Hmm. I think I know what you're thinking. Let's not go there. It's a fantastic book, It's a mix of poetic prose and a compelling storyline that grips you even as you sit there, stomach rolling, with what the pages give you. Once again, if you can't handle this kind of content (and you know what I mean), put it aside. It's honestly fine. Otherwise, have faith and give it a try. You might be sorry either way but, you won't know unless you try.
Disclaimer: I am not a professional book reviewer nor am I forcing you to read these books. I hope that's clear. :) I am just a person who happened to enjoy them. I kept the descriptions and details simple and as short as I can because I didn't want to spoil much. I can easily write full page reviews for each one if that's something you're into. Please comment or send me a message if you are.
Or just let me know what you think of this and if you would enjoy more content like this. Thanks for staying!