The Spooky Stuff is Coming Out
It’s finally happening: The house décor is finally changing to our spooky and fall themes. It seems like the summer has gone by so fast and that has felt a bit scary. It feels like time has been slipping through my fingers and then disappearing into horizons piling on top of sunrises. It’s been hard to take the time to actually watch daylight drift across the room.
Partially I blame Bubastis for being our problem child this month. Wesker was also due for her normal blood test, but Bubastis and her medical episode was a surprise. The month is over and we still have one re-check test left to do for her.
Murder Stories are Spooky
I know that there are those that would disagree, but murder stories definitely qualify as spooky in my opinion. That being said I decided to review a relatively new book, Victoria Kielland’s My Men. My Men follows the life of Brynhild Storset who emigrates form Norway to the United States and eventually becomes Belle Gunness, arguably the first serial killer in American history.
The story is not a typical multiple murder narrative. The body count is only part of the story. Instead, Kielland brings us inside Gunness’ mind as it starts to twist and turn before eventually shattering.
Feminist Spooky Stuff
Though the title of this novel is My Men, the focus is decidedly not on the men in Gunness’ life. It is more about what violence and disappointments men have subjected Gunness to and how she has responded to these forces and traumas. What the prose is concerned with is Gunness. Everything is filtered through Gunness and her thoughts and feelings. That is a beautiful thing, considering the dominance of male perspectives and male-focussed narratives in horror. Too often women are used as simply convenient and attractive victims or else purely sexual objects. The world needs more feminist spooky stuff and I will always support darker material from more diverse perspectives.
The Balance
My one glaring issue with this novel is perhaps the page count spent on Gunness before the murders began. Gunness’ crimes only compose the conclusion of the narrative, and unfortunately the style renders them into a chaotic and confusing ending when I wanted them to take front and centre for the majority of the book. It feels like an imbalance, especially when every summary is about the multiple murders, which are sometimes only described in one or two sentences.
The Neighbourhood Cat is Back
After a hiatus of several months, our neighbourhood cat has now re-discovered our backyard full of birds and wild bunnies. We love her, but we still lovingly have to drive her home so that the baby bunnies will continue to thrive. Thankfully she’s getting a bit older and has become far less of a cute murder machine. Nowadays she just likes to lounge in the unmown grass and watch wildlife pass her by.
