Bri Lee

A fiercely intelligent, heartbreakingly honest memoir and feminist call to arms in the tradition of Fight Like A Girl

Eggshell Skull

Intense read with a triumphant ending. An outstanding insight into what is really involved for victims of sexual assault who report the crime.

g.m.

Jamieson

✨ buddy read with taryn ✨

Eggshell Skull is a harrowing insight into the Australian justice system, and it's many downfalls. We follow Bri Lee - first through her experiences working as a judges associate in Queensland, primarily listening to sexual assault and child sex offence cases - and then into her experience taking her own childhood abuser to court. 

There is a lot of heavy subject matter so I give a content warning for: rape and sexual assault often described explicitly, unusual & cruel sex acts, description of self harm and suicide ideation, depression and anxiety, emotional distress, discussions of substance and alcohol abuse, use of slurs. Basically this book is, often, a lot


  “Judges tell juries: if a defendant lies, it doesn’t necessarily mean he’s guilty, but if a woman is crying as she dials triple zero after being raped, she might just be putting on a show.” 



Eggshell Skull is hard to read at times. It's heavy and many of the cases Bri Lee describes in detail are hard to read about. But because of it, this memoir always felt extremely honest and authentic, and this was one of it's greatest strengths. The majority of this book focusses on the Australian legal system and examining it's many flaws. This included the extreme difficulty of complainants in sexual offence cases to secure conviction, especially if they experience multiple marginalisations. I found Bri Lee's insights extremely thoughtful and well articulated, and I could feel her own frustration with the system myself while reading this.  

Bri Lee has such a strong narrative voice that really carries this book. Her thoughtful and insightful commentary into the justice system, and her introspection really grabbed me from the beginning. Following her narration, I found myself easily pulled into the book and compelled to just keep on reading - a feeling I don't often get with non-fiction like I do with fiction. I also appreciated how Lee was able to balance personal sections of this book with the more informative and factual parts about the legal system. The balance of legal lingo and personal storytelling was spot on. 

Eggshell Skull is emotionally harrowing and difficult to read at times, but ultimately an important and timely book. I found this so informative and interesting whilst also engaging on a personal level and it definitely gave me a lot to reflect on. Bri Lee is a fantastic writer, and if fiction writing is ever something she pursues I would love to read it. Eggshell Skull is raw, but it is one of those books I wish more people would read.

Natalie Noble

I keep putting off this review because I don’t know how to capture my thoughts. It covers such important topics and gives insight into the Australian legal system and how it handles cases of rape and sexual assault. Trigger warnings also necessary for self harm. 

I understand that it is a very personal story about her own experience, the system is definitely flawed, but the author seems to be ignorant of her privilege. As a white woman with a legal degree and an ex policeman as a father her access to and understanding of the justice system put her at an advantage but her attitude sometimes is ‘everything is against me’. I can absolutely see how it would feel that way at the time and they are very valid feelings but writing the book years later I would have liked it to be more objective because I felt the impact of this book but I worry the tone will loose people, it shouldn’t, but it will. 

Nevertheless it was an emotional and powerful read. Quite confronting to realise how many sexual assault cases are brought before the courts especially knowing so many go unreported. There is so much work to be done to remove the stigma around sexual assault so that women feel safe and supported in reporting it and so they are treated respectfully during the legal process.

Proper sex education in schools would go a long way, people say it’s not appropriate but to that I’d say the alternative is inadequate which is far more dangerous. 

I think books like this are important and should be read by more people, it’s a difficult read sometimes but the difficult topics are the ones we need to explore and discuss in order to change them. 

FYI my star rating scale (because I never now what the stars mean to other people)
⭐️ DNF or finished but I had to push through and hated it
⭐️⭐️ It was ok or I didn’t like it but it had redeeming qualities, wouldn’t recommend and will probably donate mine to local library
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Liked it would recommend but I don’t really remember it months later, staying on my shelf until I need more room
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Definitely recommend, it’s something that had impact or I couldn’t put down and I could tell you about it months/years after I finished reading it but I don’t think I’ll read it again
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ LOVE, will absolutely read again

Krystal Campbell 

This was a tough read and I wouldn't recommend it for the faint hearted. I would recommend looking into the trigger warnings before reading this book. 

As tough as it was, it was however so eye opening, raw and the character growth is inspirational. 

I feel that it took a while to get into the law side of things and I wanted more of it but i understand that it was written this way to show the reader her personal story and how she could be one of any number of women that have had the same experience.

Milly Schmidt

Scorching, self-scouring: a young woman finds her steel and learns to wield it' - Helen Garner 'Brutal, brave and utterly compelling...I can't remember a book I devoured with such intensity, nor one that moved me so profoundly' Rebecca Starford, author of Bad Behaviour and co-founder of Kill Your Darlings EGGSHELL SKULL: A well-established legal doctrine that a defendant must 'take their victim as they find them'. If a single punch kills someone because of their thin skull, that victim's weakness cannot mitigate the seriousness of the crime. But what if it also works the other way? What if a defendant on trial for sexual crimes has to accept his 'victim' as she comes: a strong, determined accuser who knows the legal system, who will not back down until justice is done? Bri Lee began her first day of work at the Queensland District Court as a bright-eyed judge's associate. Two years later she was back as the complainant in her own case. This is the story of Bri's journey through the Australian legal system; first as the daughter of a policeman, then as a law student, and finally as a judge's associate in both metropolitan and regional Queensland-where justice can look very different, especially for women. The injustice Bri witnessed, mourned and raged over every day finally forced her to confront her own personal history, one she'd vowed never to tell. And this is how, after years of struggle, she found herself on the other side of the courtroom, telling her story. Bri Lee has written a fierce and eloquent memoir that addresses both her own reckoning with the past as well as with the stories around her, to speak the truth with wit, empathy and unflinching courage. Eggshell Skull is a haunting appraisal of modern Australia from a new and essential voice. 'Courageous, heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful' Liam Pieper, author of The Toymaker 'Sensitive and clear-eyed' Jessica Friedmann, author of Things That Helped 'A page-turner of a memoir, impossible to put down' Krissy Kneen, author of An Uncertain Grace

Eggshell Skull

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