Holy hell. How can something with so much pain read so absolutely beautifully? I love the unique approach that was taken with this memoir and tying the conversations, behaviors, memories to folklore motifs.
I also just want to openly commend Machado for her vulnerability in writing this story. As she stated, it’s hard to write about a toxic experience, especially when those involved are of a marginalized identity group. There’s already not enough positive depictions of healthy queer relationships, but Machado highlights the importance of talking about the very real and common things that occur in relationships in general, hers just happens to be queer. She also emphasizes the importance of writing these stories because it proves that it can in fact happen, something that was heavily ignored societally and legally. Loved this and can’t wait to read more of her work!