a controversial memoir & the booker prize: what i read in september

the books i read in september 2024

The leaves are beginning to fall off the trees, and just like that September is over along with another month of reading.

Besides the seasonal changes, September always feels like a transitional month to me, perhaps a remnant of that back to school time when you’d stock up on your new notebooks and have a fresh new planner to fill out. My birthday is also at the start of September, which always brings along a period of self reflection, whether wanted or not.

Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how long you like Substack posts to be, I didn’t read as much this month as I did in August, but here’s the books I did read:

Men Have Called Her Crazy - Anna Marie Tendler

One thing about me is that if a celebrity memoir is causing a lot of online discourse, I will be reading it. Men Have Called Her Crazy is a memoir about Tendler’s journey with mental illness, with chapters alternating between her time spent at a psychiatric facility and vignettes from her past.

I picked this up because of the outpouring of negativity online, which intrigued me as I had never heard of Tendler before so was wondering what exactly had this woman written that was getting people so riled up? But after reading it, I was left thinking the reaction seemed a little hyperbolic for a plainly mediocre book. It’s not the best memoir I’ve ever read, nor the worst. I am being deliberately vague here as I plan to incorporate my thoughts on this book into a future Substack post, but if you’re interested in reading this one and think you would connect with it, I wouldn’t let the online reviews deter you.

The Safekeep - Yael van der Wouden

The Safekeep follows two women, obstinate Isabel, and Eva, her brother’s latest girlfriend, who spend a fraught summer together in the Dutch countryside. Set in the post-war Netherlands, this novel blends historical fiction and romance, creating a taut novel about obsession, desire, suspicion, and reckoning with history.

When the longlist for the Booker Prize 2024 was announced, this was the book I was most intrigued by, so I’m very glad it’s now earned a spot on the shortlist!

Headshot - Rita Bullwinkel

Another Booker Prize longlist title, Headshot centres around a two-day girls boxing tournament at a rundown gym in Reno, Nevada. Each chapter is told from the perspectives of the two female fighters, allowing us a peek into their heads as they each move through the competition.

The strongest aspect of this short novel is Bullwinkel’s depiction of girlhood, the obsessiveness of being a teenage girl and zeroing in on something so intently that it feels like you won’t ever be able to do anything else. Though the boxing contest was an interesting format through which to tell the story, I do think it made the novel feel slightly repetitive as it progressed.

Everyone I Know is Dying - Emily Slapper

An addition to the ‘sad girl novels’ sub-genre, Everyone I Know is Dying tells the story of 20-something Iris as she struggles with a mental health crisis. This book had all the aspects of a sad girl book I usually like: an unlikeable protagonist, messy relationships, a portrayal of the true ugliness of mental illness, but unfortunately it wasn’t a standout for me. It simultaneously felt too rushed and also too long to the point that it became repetitive.

God Complex - Rachael Allen

God Complex is narrative poem about the breakdown of a relationship, told alongside the degradation of nature. I really enjoyed how the imagery of an abusive relationship was intertwined with flashes of a decaying environment, with clear commentary on our current climate crisis.

These Violent Delights - Micah Nemerever

These Violent Delights follows grieving Paul as he meets the charismatic Julian at university in the early 1970s. They soon form an intense relationship that eventually spirals out of control and hurtles them toward an act of irrevocable violence.

The main problem this book suffers is that it’s a lot of telling, not showing. From the moment the two protagonists meet, we are told that these boys have an obsessive bond which eventually turns into a site of darkness and violence, but we never really watch this supposed relationship grow. It’s a long book, but those pages aren’t used to their full potential; it’s all just very undeveloped.

endnotes

I would love to hear what your standout reads were in September, so let me know what you read in the comments!

A few things I’ve been loving lately:

• This Bianco Latte Eau de Parfum - I first bought the sample and I got so many compliments on it, so the next day I ordered the full bottle. If you’re looking for a pure, sweet vanilla scent, this is the perfume for you.

• This article from The Atlantic. As someone who is so entrenched in the online book community, sometimes I forget that the practice of reading books on a societal level is troublingly in decline. This article has encouraged me to put my phone down more so it doesn’t ruin my attention span any further.

• The Fitness Marshall YouTube channel. These dance workouts are great for when you don’t want to do a full intense workout, or for a cool-down or just for fun!

• Iced caramel lattes (yes even in the colder months).

• Writing in my reading journal. The one I’ve been using is this one from Papier.