Home › Books › Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative
Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative
by
68/99
Critics' Rating Index
70/99
Readers' Rating Index
92/99
Scholars' Citation Index
92/99
Volume of Reviews
74/99
Volume of Reader Ratings
Sign in to add to your shelf, rate, or review this book.
About This Book
Memoir meets craft masterclass in this "daring, honest, psychologically insightful" exploration of how we think and write about intimate experiences—"a must read for anybody shoving a pen across paper or staring into a screen or a past" (Mary Karr). In this bold and exhilarating mix of memoir and master class, Melissa Febos tackles the emotional, psychological, and physical work of writing intimately while offering an utterly fresh examination of the storyteller's life and the questions which run through it. How might we go about capturing on the page the relationships that have formed us? How do we write about our bodies, their desires and traumas? What does it mean for an author's way of writing, or living, to be dismissed as "navel-gazing"—or else hailed as "so brave, so raw"? And to whom, in the end, do our most intimate stories belong? Drawing on her own path from aspiring writer to acclaimed author and writing professor—via addiction and recovery, sex work and Harvard night school—Melissa Febos has created a captivating guide to the writing life, and a brilliantly unusual exploration of subjectivity, privacy, and the power of divulgence. Candid and inspiring, Body Work will empower readers and writers alike, offering ideas—and occasional notes of caution—to anyone who has ever hoped to see themselves in a story.
Reviews
"These forthright essays make a clear case for writing as (incidentally) therapeutic."
"Febos's newest book is not a story about her body; rather, it is written through and with her sexual and physical experiences in such a way that it radically destabilizes boundaries between meaning, intelligibility, corporeality, intimacy, and so much more—all through the practice of storytelling."
"Body Work helped me learn how to work alongside and through my ongoing pain by forging a creative outlet."
"Although the essays in what is arguably [Febos'] latest act of service to that questionable project are all personal narratives themselves (as opposed to straight-up craft essays with clear dos and don'ts for the aspiring or practicing writer), they also provide practical and philosophical arguments for the expansiveness that such narratives allow and for their power in the world ..."
"Body Work is good but not great."
"Febos's fellow scribes will appreciate her shrewd takes on the intersection of craft and life, and even nonwriters will enjoy the artistry on display throughout."
"Sources cited in Body Work are paltry in comparison and include a CDC study, a New Yorker article here and there, the poet Eileen Myles, and the Torah among others."
"Of the many texts on the subject, this one feels most engaging and timely ..."
"Above all, Febos offers the space and tools to reflect, rethink, revisit, and reimagine—in service of good writing, and good living—with grains of truth that reader-writers will want to keep close."
"Febos takes no prisoners in this strongly worded manifesto—despite her claim on the first page that it is not a manifesto."
Preview
Reader Reviews
0 reviewsSign in to write a review.
No reader reviews yet. Be the first!