Ratings111
Average rating4.2
This is a very quick read and an excellent book, and one that will linger after the last page. I really enjoyed Emezi’s lyrical writing style, and once things got going in the third chapter it moves at a fairly quick pace.
Aside from Pet itself, the magical realism of the setting is a little abstracted and never fully explained, but it blends well with the story’s tone. It handles its sensitive topics in a very age appropriate way (although nothing is explicit, it will be a “mind the trigger warnings” book for many). I also appreciated how the setting played I a very thematic role, how it’s easy to become complacent even (or especially) in a world that prides itself on being better than the one that came before. And I loved the casual diversity in the cast (and Jam being both trans and selectively mute and neither of them being treated as a plot altering thing).
I do wish we’d had a little more from the conclusion, and I don’t know that I will ever reread it, but it is definitely one I recommend reading at least once.
Wow. A great short read. I read it in under 24hrs (audiobook). I look forward to reading the prequel. This follows a trans teenager who finds that the world is not as good as it looks. The book is magical, highly suggest.
slow at first but once the pace started to quicken it was a really easy read. I like how Emezi built Lucille as this place in which they intended to be some sort of utopia, and also how Jam's identity as a trans autistic girl is just a part of her and not a main focal point of her character as she is accepted in Lucille
One of the most unique books I've read so far this year. An alternate universe so different from ours and yet also so similar. The theme in this book of us telling ourselves that we are doing enough, that we are catching/have caught all the monsters but in reality we are still failing in so many ways is so poignant.
The diversity in this book is so beautiful, and the false utopia is a bit chilling because you can see that the revolution really did everything it could do but it still wasn't enough. The truth is that the work will never be done, even if the world could get as perfect as it possibly could. There will always be evil, there will always be monsters, and we must keep working to find them because turning our heads and saying we fixed everything is just burying our heads in the sand, and people will end up hurt anyway.
Beautiful read.
Do not be afraid.
Beautiful book for anyone who is or was a child.
Beautiful concepts and subtle details of an atypical world.
I read this for the 2024 Trans Rights Readathon & absolutely loved it. Jam’s story resonated with me. Akwaeke Emezi is a master with words, I love their prose.
Black, trans girl lead who is selectively verbal and uses sign language frequently. Jam's best friend has three parents (they are in a polyamorous relationship and one of the parents uses they/them pronouns). And the Entirely black cast. I enjoyed the writing so much and the magical realism aspects.
I think this is a really good young adult novel but it was perhaps a bit too simplistic for my tastes. I thought it was really cool how progressive it was.
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---
Also, the problem is, when you think you’ve been without monsters for so long, sometimes you forget what they look like, what they sound like, no matter how much remembering your education urges you to do. It’s not the same when the monsters are gone. You’re only remembering shadows of them, stories that seem to be limited to the pages or screens you read them from. Flat and dull things. So, yes, people forget. But forgetting is dangerous.
Forgetting is how the monsters come back.
What’s Pet About?
Jam and her best friend, Redemption, live in the city of Lucille—a city that’s evolved beyond things like bigotry, crime, inequality, and more. Just ask anyone who lives there—that’s what they’re told, that’s what they believe.
But then Jam is visited by a creature from another world. This creature is there to hunt—not everything is as good and pure as the people of Lucille believe, and this creature is here to hunt someone hurting someone. And the creature (Pet) wants Jam to help with the hunt. Pet can’t tell Jam what the issue is, their prey is at Redemption’s home.
Redemption tries to tell his family about the problem, but no one believes him—that kind of thing doesn’t happen anymore. Everyone knows that.
The World
Lucille is in many ways a dream city—some sort of revolution occurred (it wasn’t entirely peaceful, but we don’t get details). And a Progressive utopia has been established for a generation or so. No sexism, no bigotry, full equality for all, no ableism, no crime, no want. And everyone (as far as the reader can see) buys into the vision for the city.
Am pretty sure those who aren’t that interested in this vision for life aren’t in Lucille anymore, whether voluntarily or not.
It feels oppressive, honestly. A benevolent oppression, it seems, but I’m not sure that’s really that much better.
One danger of this thorough monoculture, complete with everyone buying into the belief, is that humans aren’t good. There will be problems, criminals, broken people, and those who will find ways to get pleasure from hurting others (in various ways)—in short, sinners (however you want to define sinners). If the cultural orthodoxy is that this has been fixed, no one will look for the outlier. No one will look out for the victim, either. As mentioned in the opening quote—that’s a danger.
Harry Harrison painted a similar picture in his Stainless Steel Rat novels (although his outliers were frequently the heroes of the story as often as the villains—and the government was on the look for them).
Pet
I really liked Pet—particularly as he is in the last third or so of the book. I’m not entirely convinced by all his actions and what he tells Jam about himself at the beginning—it’s not that I think he was lying, I just wonder how consistent he is from beginning to the end.
I figure if I re-read the book a time or two, I’d end up being convinced, though. He’s probably the same being throughout, and I just understood him better at the end. Either way, he’s definitely someone you don’t want hunting you.
So, what did I think about Pet?
I bounced all over when it came to what to say about this novel.
It’s too short, really. Problems arise and are solved too quickly. And some of the rich, deep, thoughts weren’t given enough time and space to breathe—really, everything seemed like it was given short shrift.
But.
Oh man, this was just so wonderfully composed. Not a wasted word. Such a rich amount of world-building went into this—all the characters were so fully realized. And Emezi doesn’t need 3-4 paragraphs to do something like most writers—a sentence or two will do. Lovely and efficient prose.
This makes me think I’m wrong, and the book isn’t too short and everything is given enough space and time. But I’m not.
The worldbuilding alone is fantastic—no matter what I might think of the world. The story is haunting and disturbing in all the right ways. I can easily see why someone would become a big fan of Emezi based on this work, and I’m intrigued by the sequel/companion novel. If this wasn’t so abbreviated, I’d imagine that I’d be a giant fan (or a massive naysayer, come to think of it).
Either way, I’m glad I read this and do recommend it—there’s a lot to chew on here, and I’m looking forward to discussing it with Nisha, who recommended it to me for this Challenge. (I expect a lot of “you just don’t understand, Uncle H.” And I probably don’t)
I read Bitter before reading this and I feel like that is part of why I found Pet so compelling. Knowing Lucille's backstory and the history of the angels made this an incredible sequel. I'm not sure I would have rated it so highly if it was a standalone as it does feel a little lacking in context without Bitter.
really enjoyed this! the commentary was obviously spectacular as well as the representation. i enjoyed the writing so much and the magical realism aspects. at some points, i felt slightly confused because of lack of explanation which normally doesn't bother me but since this is a middle grade, i feel like if i'm confused then kids definitely will be.
This was one of the wildest books I've read in a while. I'm so used to reading dystopian teen fiction that it totally threw me when this was...utopian???
Oh how I ended up loving this short book and could write so much more about it. It took me a little bit of time to really become interested, but when the fantasy elements where revealed I was hooked and then I fell in love with the protagonist and side characters. I mean, I want to know more about the librarian for example. The [heavy] themes and the way they're handled are *chef's kiss IMO. I'm unclear if this is technically YA/teen, but something about the construction of the book felt more adult - so if you're anti-YA I wouldn't let that put you off to it. The prequel has a release date in 2022 and it's going to be one of my most anticipated releases in the New Year.
This was a beautiful book, a darkly whimsical fairy tale about what lurks under the comforting fiction that we can tell who is good or bad just by looking.
The writing style is dreamlike and won't be for everyone but I enjoyed it. The characters aside from Jam and Pet aren't super well developed but they're interesting still and fit well with the story, though I do wish we could have seen a bit more of Jam's relationship with her parents.
I would warn anyone interested in reading this that it has content related to child abuse (though not described) and a few scenes near the end have some pretty brutal violence. If you're okay with that though I would definitely recommend this.
Brilliant! I'm not a big ya reader but Freshwater was one of the best books I've ever read and really core shaking so I want to read everything Emezi writes. This book was wonderful - abolitionist A Wrinkle in Time. Great perspectives on trauma and healing I think most adults could benefit from reading. Badass and thoughtful trans heroine who stands up for what she believes and also listens to and trusts others. Beautiful and visceral imagery. Centers inner experience in a really unique way. Can't wait to recommend to all my friends who work with teens!
We start with an almost unbearably diverse and accepting world. The kind
of checks-every-box utopia that strains credulity in 2020. I almost
closed the book because it felt a little contrived. The world is a bad
hard place and it is kind of a struggle to read otherwise right now. But in the end, the cynicism of the present was the perfect lens for taking in this little book!
I was primed to look for cracks in the
facade of this seemingly perfectly safe and perfectly diverse world,
just as Jam, the main character, resists seeing them herself. It's a
great juxtaposition. Jam's optimism and resilience played against the
brutal realism of Pet's quest left me, by the end, hoping to one day
have a future worth protecting-one that's imperfect but still full of
love and care, as Lucille is. All the characters were richly drawn and a joy to read about.
As an aside, Ube is a babe and I'd totally read a book about a what a revolutionary librarian gets up to after the revolution.
4/5, great writing, going to seek out Emezi's novels for adults.
bookclub4m “we all read the same book” listen to the podcast for our group discussion :)
ok wow a bunch of people said this book was awesome but I was like “oh idk it's about monster hunting?? idk not my thing” but then I finally read it and wow!! it's so good!! It reminds me of A.S. King in the best way. NOBODY TOLD ME IT WAS ABOUT METAPHORICAL MONSTER HUNTING JEEZ.
This is weird and timely. I think I need more time to mull it over but that's not a problem since I can't stop thinking about it!!