Madame Bovary

 I had read Madame Bovary a million years ago. It was interesting re-reading it. I remember how little sympathy I had for Emma Bovary, how vain and selfish and shallow she seemed to me. She is all of those things. But at my age now I see how young she was and how constrained and I had sympathy with her rage and frustration and admiration for her willfulness. She still isn't likeable, but it's an amazing character portrait and an indictment on the oppressive restrictions of provincial life.

Eileen

 I loved Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh! She wrote My Year of Rest and Relaxation which was also very good, but this had a crackly, crusty, visceral drive to it, a momentum of emotional squalor and social disturbance. Her character was fascinating and dark and mean and smart. I didn't want it to end because I wanted to continue to hang out with this demented curmudgeon.

In the Dream House

 In the Dream House is a beautiful memoir by Carmen Maria Machado. It is about an abusive relationship. But this doesn't describe the beauty of Machado's language. She writes in short, evocative sections, each a poetic and crystal clear encapsulation of emotional dynamics. I felt incredible sympathy for her. I will read more by this writer.

Black Wave

 Michelle Tea's novel Black Wave revisits some familiar terrain of her memoirs. San Francisco in the 90s, queer arty druggy scenes. Her writing is insightful and funny and self reflexive. Even though nothing like my life, it is relatable some how. I would have loved this book if it had remained in this register. But something happens, there is the apocalypse. You see the inklings of this throughout, the environmental degradation. Little bleak background details. But when the character moves to LA, it ramps up. And the book opens up. There is a long end section where people retreat into a dream world and it so beautiful and sad and expansive. I loved this book.