Eliza and Her Monsters

I'm torn on this one. I think there's a lot Eliza and Her Monsters does well.

I like the message that creativity can be sparked through gobbling up the creative work of others.

I like the exploration of how anxiety can manifest as socially isolating oneself from the so-called “real world.”

I like how Eliza's parents fail at understanding her interests and means of socializing. In their naiveté they mistakenly belittle the scale of her accomplishments and the way her work connects people. Part of this is commentary on generational differences in uses of and attitudes toward technology.
But the book also touches on Eliza failing to grasp how sports do for her family what art does for her. People find joy and meaning in vastly different pursuits. Even if we don't fully understand why someone loves what they love, we can still appreciate how that thing makes them feel.

Zappia questions cultural assumptions about fame as something lucky to have and easy to live with. She describes how unexpected release of private information can rock someone's world and obliterate their boundaries, even absent malicious intent.

I liked looking at fame in the context of fandom; the shifting power differentials between creators and fans in a digital age. We can click a button and be met with overwhelming volumes of immediate feedback, good or bad. We use technology to interact with people we would have never met, and moreover, to interact with people in ways we would never in-person, face-to-face.

I'm fascinated by this idea that how people express themselves depends on the format in which they are sharing ideas. We text people messages we wouldn't say aloud (looking at you, passive aggressive college roommate group threads). Writing a goodreads review is different than discussing Eliza and Her Monsters with a friend.
Talking to people is different when you're alone in a car with them vs. in a bookstore at a Halloween party vs. texting vs. sending an email. The various methods we use to communicate change how we phrase things and whether we say them at all.


My main problem with the book was the relationship between Eliza and Wallace.

I couldn't quite understand why Wallace was so angry with Eliza when he found out her secret. Wallace hid plenty from Eliza for a long time. When he dumped it all on her, she was supportive and reassuring.

I understand that what Eliza hid from Wallace was different. I knew Wallace would find out, and would feel angry and embarrassed and betrayed. All of those reactions would be warranted. I think the issue is that Eliza's decision to not tell Wallace felt far more justified and fleshed out than did Wallace's response to finding out her secret.

Eliza was between a rock and a hard place. How could she tell him? How could she not tell him? How could she tell him and only him—in other words, how could she be sure others wouldn't find out?

Wallace was dismissive of the immense impact of Eliza's revealed identity. He seemed to see it only in relation to himself and his relationship with Eliza. But it changed a lot more than that.

It changed how everyone saw her. It fundamentally altered power dynamics between her and her fans. It drove a wedge between her and her work. That which she could previously create and share on her own terms was now inextricably attached to her birth name. Pieces of her life she had intentionally separated were slammed together without her knowledge or consent. Wallace minimized that. Eliza wasn't just being withholding and ungrateful. It was more than that.

It's hard to like a romance when you don't see the appeal in who the protagonist has fallen for.