In this collection of short stories, Carmen Maria Machado maps the physical and psychological toll of patriarchal structures on the female form. The narratives blend elements of psychological horror, science fiction, and dark folklore. In one story, a woman insists on keeping a green ribbon tied around her neck; in another, an artist chronicles the experiences of a global plague through a catalog of past sexual encounters. The book reimagines the procedural drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as a surreal urban nightmare and tracks the literal fading away of a woman following weight-loss surgery. These stories document how trauma, desire, and societal expectations reshape a woman’s reality.
The book targets readers interested in feminist theory, queer identity, and the intersection of the body with political control. Those who study how gendered violence is normalized in pop culture find concrete examples here. Readers walk away with a vocabulary for the ways society consumes women’s autonomy and a stark look at the domestic horrors hidden within traditional fairy tales. It provides a framework for understanding how the physical self acts as a site of both intense pleasure and systemic violation.
Deep, inward-looking, open-ended and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Wisdom Collector. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2017
- Language
- EN
