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4.0 

In the Dream House

By Carmen Maria Machado
In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

A revolutionary memoir about domestic abuse by the award-winning author of Her Body and Other Parties

In the Dream House is Carmen Maria Machado’s engrossing and wildly innovative account of a relationship gone bad, and a bold dissection of the mechanisms and cultural representations of psychological abuse. Tracing the full arc of a harrowing relationship with a charismatic but volatile woman, Machado struggles to make sense of how what happened to her shaped the person she was becoming.

And it’s that struggle that gives the book its original structure: each chapter is driven by its own narrative trope—the haunted house, erotica, the bildungsroman—through which Machado holds the events up to the light and examines them from different angles. She looks back at her religious adolescence, unpacks the stereotype of lesbian relationships as safe and utopian, and widens the view with essayistic explorations of the history and reality of abuse in queer relationships.

Machado’s dire narrative is leavened with her characteristic wit, playfulness, and openness to inquiry. She casts a critical eye over legal proceedings, fairy tales, Star Trek, and Disney villains, as well as iconic works of film and fiction. The result is a wrenching, riveting book that explodes our ideas about what a memoir can do and be.

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3716 Reviews

4.0
Surprised Face with Open Mouth“I could relate to her and loved the writing. This book was thought-provoking. We talk about partner abuse but what if there isn't any physical violence. That's an interesting topic. I actually thought this would tell more about things that happened in the relationship and was slightly disappointed when I found out it wasn't the case. I still liked the writing and atmosphere felt threatening. This was really unique reading experience and somehow I surprised myself and ended up loving it. I loved how I got new information and how this made me ponder things.”
Diverse charactersOriginal writingDarkThought-provoking
Original writing

About Carmen Maria Machado

Carmen Maria Machado is the author of Her Body and Other Parties, which was a finalist for the National Book Award and winner of the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize. She lives in Philadelphia with her wife.

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