September Girls
Ratings7
Average rating2.6
This sounded like something I had to read myself, and boy, do I wish I hadn't.
My full review can be found at SFF Book Review. I don't have the wish or energy to post it here (and do all the reformatting and stuff).
Here's the really short version:
THE GOOD: The chapters in italics, told by the Girls.
THE BAD: Everything else. Misogyny, sexism, homophobes, a boring plot, douchebag characters, no romance, no mystery (!), and writing that ranges from okay to absolutely terrible!
THE VERDICT: A waste of time and money. An incredibly boring, pretentious story that spews hate for women on almost every page and does NOT examine it or make its protagonist grow. Fail.
RATING: 3/10 – Really bad.
Okay, so basically I had to read September Girls because a fight broke out. “It's super sexist!” “It's super empowering!” “Great book!” “Worst book ever!” The arguments seemed to be so strikingly opposite that I began to wonder if maybe people were reading two completely different books. At least until I cracked open September Girls and read it for myself. Then it all made sense.
On one hand, Madison builds a unique and interesting mirror for patriarchal society with the Girls. The constraints placed on them, how they decide to deal with the constraints, their limitations, and yes even the way that the Girls view society as outsiders. However, there's really not enough critique in the text to bring it all home. Not to mention the really most problematic and annoying element the Girls, if they want to be free of the curse, still have to bone a virgin dude. Because female life fulfillment still hinges on some guy's cock.
There are a few sparkle bright moments in the book here and there. On the whole, however, September Girls is sort of dull. The absolutely most frustrating thing about the book is seeing the neverending spark of potential within its pages, but it's quickly extinguished as we make an abrupt one-eighty so we don't have to engage too deeply with the hefty subject matter.