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A review by mxunsmiley
Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars: A Dangerous Trans Girl's Confabulous Memoir by Kai Cheng Thom
5.0
Tongue-in-cheek, surreal, and often heart-wrenching, this was definitely a big surprise for me, as it's billed like a memoir, and now I want all memoirs written this way--improbable scenarios and all, because the sentiments and meanings of this novel all align with those you might expect from a memoir.
I loved the rejection of a neat and complete resolution. One chapter toward the end also stuck out to me, in which she remarks that kindness can be a type of violence as well. That additional rejection of easy and readily comprehensible dichotomies was so meaningful to me as well.
So much of the imagery and symbolism was so mesmerizing. The one chapter in the latter half of the book detailing the growth of her hair was full of the most astounding descriptive language I've read in a while. Obviously, I preferred the second half of the book, but the entire novel is beautifully written and structured.
Eat your heart out, Gabriel García Márquez, Ms. Thom does magical realism with ten times more of an impact.
I loved the rejection of a neat and complete resolution. One chapter toward the end also stuck out to me, in which she remarks that kindness can be a type of violence as well. That additional rejection of easy and readily comprehensible dichotomies was so meaningful to me as well.
So much of the imagery and symbolism was so mesmerizing. The one chapter in the latter half of the book detailing the growth of her hair was full of the most astounding descriptive language I've read in a while. Obviously, I preferred the second half of the book, but the entire novel is beautifully written and structured.
Eat your heart out, Gabriel García Márquez, Ms. Thom does magical realism with ten times more of an impact.