The First Bad Man

finished reading this today so that I didn't have to bring an almost finished book on holiday. Probably not the correct choice, I should've just bought a book if I needed to on holiday ahah

Absolutely love her writing style, everyone I've recommended this to I've described it as a weird person in a weird world. Now I've read it I wish I was a bit more tentative about my recommendation ahaha

definitely literary fiction and definitely a comedy. Lots of this will stick in my mind and can see myself re-reading eventually

I don't think the epilogue was needed. Half off for the ending and its pacing, but also maybe it was how I ended up reading it today

Waited for weeks to get it at the library. Checked it out first day. Forgot it at The Mill. Remember leaving it on the bar. Enjoy the free discard, Mill person. I am the 2nd bad man.

I love Miranda July, but I couldn't get through this. I read till page 100 and wondered where it was going.

Had potential, but despite the quirky characters and unusual plot, it dragged after a while. Fulfills my Read Harder Challenge category of a debut novel.

I have rarely felt that sad finishing a book.

Competently written, but it just didn't move me. Actually no, it did gross me out quite a bit but other than that, no.

The amount of ‘quirky' was through the roof, very early 00s peak-hipster era, before the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope got us rolling our eyes.

Also most of it was about babies and I'd never have picked it up if I'd known that.

I gave in to the hype so that's probably made the disappointment worse, overall it was an enjoyable and hilarious read. Not sure what I expected.

I love July's short fiction, this not as much. It's not a bad story, it's just full of people who mildly disgusted me doing mildly disgusting things and the clever observations that July uses to pepper her short stories are few and further between. It is possible that I just was not in the mood for this brand of weird. Her imagination never fails to impress me. The real test will be whether or not I still remember it after a period of time.