I'm a Fan
Ratings32
Average rating3.2
A contemptuous book. Other reviews here on the site have said what I think about this book in a far better way already, but I really did not care about this and should have DNF'd it tbh.
Talking briefly about the good. I liked the style and snappiness of the book. Chapters were often short and digestible to really coherent thoughts or streams of thoughts or actions. The narration style also was something I enjoyed, being a glimpse into the unnamed narrator's mind about different things going on. Time span was a little hard to pinpoint but also kinda irrelevant so it made it easy to view this as a memoir of notes about a person's life.
However I basically detested everything else about this book. No single character was likable, certainly including the main narrator, and I think that's largely because their viewpoint was so venomous and filled with spite. Painted in that lens nobody is going to be likable. The main character's motives were so sad and pitiable and their view of everything and everyone around them was so marred with distrust and inhospitality that I kept thinking the entire time how much I never wanted to meet anyone in this book but especially not her. The narrator really needed to get over herself but also this one guy she's following.
One thing I was particularly disappointed in was the narrator's view on race and gender. She tackled both of these social topics, and a few more, several times over the course of the book, but never with any coherence or lingering thought. It was always unbridled rage about the situation she and others like her were in. She complained endlessly about white people and about men and frankly I agree with her and I think it's important to expose those things. However, she didn't really actually SAY anything interesting or useful about them. She kinda just beat the points over with a bat and said they're unequivocally bad and that they make her life miserable. And I'm sorry if that's the case, and she's right that she is a victim of the patriarchy and of race relations. But really, is that all we're going to do here? It felt apropos to the book as it was always talked about with a sting of venom, and much like the rest of the book it was entirely pointless and didn't have anything interesting to say whatsoever.
It should be noted that I listened to the audiobook of this, narrated by the author, which I think contributed to the tone of the book significantly, so I gave it some gusto for that, but it also furthered my disdain for this book since it drove home how sad it was that the author is so clearly just fiery over this stuff she really needs to get a grip over and solve in a more well-meant manner. If she really cares so much about this one guy, and about her role as a brown skinned person, then use that power and the voice and platform she has to actually say or do something more than just spit at others blindly.
Wow that was quite an experience. I usually don't gravitate towards books with extensive internal monologues that could be perceived as whining, especially from an unlikeable character. However, this book handled it exceptionally well. The author deftly explored numerous themes, avoiding the pitfall of feeling checklist-like or forced in the plot. Themes such as nepotism, class privilege, race privilege, and male entitlement were woven seamlessly into the narrative, with the obsessive parasocial relationship being a particularly captivating aspect.
The brief chapters dedicated to these important themes were both enjoyable and analytical, avoiding one-dimensionality. However, I found myself wondering if these self-reflective passages were also the monologue of our deranged protagonist, who seems to be more of an outsider in her own story and life. Despite this ambiguity, the portrayal of the psyche of “a fan” in the present time was well-executed.
Overall, I would rate it 4 stars out of 5.
p.s- I'm glad that the author used Marina Abramovic's Rhythm 0 to depict our inherent inclination towards violence in the face of someone else's vulnerability, especially in the context of misogyny
p.s 2- Thank god the boyfriend got separated from her
settled in the middle cause I hate the mc but also I get what the author was going for, and also I have been like the mc, but also I feel like the author didn't commit enough to the satirical bit. where was the progression? this could've used a stronger plot to anchor it.
It was a fun read. The main character is pretty unhinged, but even with her questionable decisions and delusions, she presented very some interesting critiques of society's double standards and injustices (in terms of class, power, race, among others). I appreciate what the author was doing with both the story and its writing. It felt like a manic rant, which does help convey the mental state of the MC. She's simultaneously very introspective and self-aware while actively engaging with her most nonsensical conclusions. However, most characters in this book are unlikeable, hypocrites, and overall bad people. I don't mind unlikeable characters, but wow did I find it difficult to hold on to any relatable or redeemable traits! Ultimately, it was good, but not a must-read. Although for how short it is, I would recommend this. Read this in an afternoon.
I'm a Fan has many of the things that make a good literary fiction in my opinion, approaching social and psychological issues in a way that seems organic, beautifully constructed sentences (so many quotable lines here seriously), a snappy structure (vignettes) and an engaging main character.
I tend to be leery or books that deal with influencers because I often find them completely out of touch and only offering a very caricatural image of them that completely lacks depth or realism, here the portrayal was more interesting (mostly because it didn't center on making the figure of the influencer into a despicably entitled shallow figure worthy of nothing but scorn). The approach to power dynamics and race is also equally careful, lucid, and honest. The choice to not name the characters also works very nicely here forcing you to consider them first as part of dynamics and through their relationships to one another it also doubles as an invitation to think about parasocial relationships and how little we truly know of people we see and sometimes of people we are invested in in that not quite a part of their lives way. All of this culminate in a bleakish but intense read.
This book came up in my recommendations because I loved Second Place by Rachel Cusk and I think the recommendation was pretty spot on, I rarely say “perfect for fans of...” but in this case I'll second the recommendation I have received.
It gets a 4.5 rounded up from me.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for providing me the opportunity to read and review this book.
No plot just vibes (of toxicity in relationships and observation on the misogyny and racism in society).
The protagonist reminded me of the Yellowface protagonist if she were focused in a toxic relationship.
Really great.
the writing was terrible. it was straight up trash. a millennial woman using gen z slang for whatever reason, to sell or connect with the younger generation? it was so fucking cringe i can't even begin to explain how badly i cringed. the short chapters was the only pros about this book, but the writing was hard to get through. it was horrible, so so horrible. the author had weird way of putting up the chapters. in one chapter shes talking about the mc having fantasies of being fucked or something and then in the next, shes inserting her 2 cents on some controversial topic, or how the man she wants to be with wants to be seen in public with her for her skin color and to make himself look good. the book was a mess. and i am just glad its over.
well, i guess, i am not a fan