Name: kay's review of Supper Club by Lara Williams
Item: Supper Club
Rating: 2.5
Author: kay

Lara Williams

A sharply intelligent and intimate debut novel about a secret society of hungry young women who meet after dark and feast to reclaim their appetites--and their physical spaces--that posits the question: if you feed a starving woman, what will she grow into? Roberta spends her life trying not to take up space. At almost thirty, she is adrift and alienated from life. Stuck in a mindless job and reluctant to pursue her passion for food, she suppresses her appetite and recedes to the corners of rooms. But when she meets Stevie, a spirited and effervescent artist, their intense friendship sparks a change in Roberta, a shift in her desire for more. Together, they invent the Supper Club, a transgressive and joyous collective of women who gather to celebrate, rather than admonish, their hungers. They gather after dark and feast until they are sick; they break into private buildings and leave carnage in their wake; they embrace their changing bodies; they stop apologizing. For these women, each extraordinary yet unfulfilled, the club is a way to explore, discover, and push the boundaries of the space they take up in the world. Yet as the club expands, growing both in size and rebellion, Roberta is forced to reconcile herself to the desire and vulnerabilities of the body--and the past she has worked so hard to repress. Devastatingly perceptive and savagely funny, Supper Club is an essential coming-of-age story for our times.

Supper Club

rachel

I was terrified of being asked for my opinion, and yet I longed to be - staring hard at the text in front of me, trying to conceive an original thought.

Delia Smith calls it "tart's pasta." Italian-American restaurants call it "whore's pasta." But Nigella Lawson calls it "slut's spaghetti," and that's the one I prefer. Because there's nothing more terrifying than a woman who eats and fucks with abandon.

It makes sense to me that there is a market for a vegetarian burger that bleeds. 

My whole life was the push/pull of appetite: wanting to consume, but also be consumed. 

Eating and love had been, throughout my life, irrevocably connected. 

sara gerner

Max 

The chapter where she bastardizes pasta puttanesca made my dead mother spin in her grave

Fable

Im living for female rage even though i thought it was portrayed in a weird way sometimes. Plot really comes together in the end - how her relationships with men, food and her own beauty shapes her 

Thea Sophie

Ozge Kara

First half of the book, I was very drawn to it. In the middle of the book the main character’s endless self pity and how she is part of toxic relationships just drove me crazy and I stopped reading, it was just dragging. By the end she actually pulls herself (a tiny tiny bit) together and manages to understand her self worth. 
I guess I hated-liked this book because the main character reminded me of myself in my 20s and just as I turned 30 I also find myself going back to my 20 year old self and slap myself or hug myself. 
There are good ideas in the book but I feel they are not well developed. Supperclub self manifestation is a good idea. Adding recipes to the narrator is a good idea. Playing with the nouns of the trans person is a very bad idea. 
Overall. Ok.

Charlotte Dann

An ode to female appetite, to wounds and scars, to trying to ask for what you need, and then taking what you want; the feminist bacchanalia I don’t know how I lived without.

Watch my full video review here.

A sharply intelligent and intimate debut novel about a secret society of hungry young women who meet after dark and feast to reclaim their appetites--and their physical spaces--that posits the question: If you feed a starving woman, what will she grow into? Roberta spends much of her time trying not to take up space. At almost thirty, she is adrift and alienated from life. Stuck in her mindless job and reluctant to pursue her passion for food, she suppresses her appetite and recedes to the corners of rooms. But when she meets Stevie, a spirited and effervescent artist, their intense friendship sparks a change in Roberta, a shift in her desire for more. Together, they invent the Supper Club, a transgressive and joyous collective of women who celebrate--rather than admonish--their hungers. They gather after dark and feast until they are sick; they break into private buildings and leave carnage in their wake; they embrace their changing bodies; they stop apologizing. For these women, the club is a way to explore, discover, and push the boundaries of the space they take up in the world--and reclaim it. Yet as the club expands, growing both in size and rebellion, Roberta is forced to reconcile herself to the desires and vulnerabilities of the body--and the past she has worked so hard to repress. Devastatingly perceptive and savagely funny, Supper Club is an essential coming-of-age story for our times.

georgia greenway

maggie

(heavy tws for: rape, self harm, depression, and disordered eating) oh my god this book was so ridiculously good... following the trend of depressed and unlikeable twenty-something female narrators, this book really expanded on what it means to take up space as a woman and how that can physically and mentally take a toll. it also explores in a very unique way the dynamics in which we as women interact with eachother and how those can be challenged. a star off for the tws and bc some of the time-jumping could have been cleaner. but overall this is just such an amazing portrait of how womanhood and food can intersect in our modern world.

Imie Kent-Muller

Thank you to Hamish Hamilton for sending me a copy of this book. The cover intrigued me into reading a synopsis, the synopsis made me want to grab this book as quick as i could. Supper Club is a delicious tale that will immerse you in seconds. Lara Williams has written a gorgeous story of coming-of-age, healing and food. It is witty, heartfelt and oh so tasty. 

The story focuses on Roberta, a young woman who loves to cook but also struggles with darkness from her past. She turns to food to comfort her, and she decides she wants to do the same for others. She, and her friend Stevie, concoct this secret society - The Supper Club - where women who have darkness meet to gorge on food together as a form of healing. We learn the stories of these women as they join the club and the story deals with from PTSD from an attack, sexuality, rape, body image, unhealthy relationships and so much more. Williams brings hope to these characters through friendship and food which is written beautifully. It is gritty, but gorgeous and yummy to read. 

Be warned, do not read on an empty stomach - the food parts to this book will have your mouth watering. Williams adds in recipes throughout the book that made me want to head to a kitchen, the dinners that are hosted are filled with gorgeous meals, and the way Williams writes immerses you in the smell and flavour of the story. It is a very sensual read, which adds to the whole experience.

If you’re looking for a new literary read that you want to lose yourself in for an afternoon, then I would highly recommend Supper Club. Once I started, I couldn’t stop. It’s an absolutely tasty read that is meant to be devoured! At its heart, the story is about friendship, learning to love yourself, and healing. It is a delicious read that I would highly recommend.

Chelsea White

TW: Rape (there is a rape in this book, and I do mention it in my review).
2.5 stars
Whew this book was a slog. Parts of it deeply moved me (such as the poignant last paragraph, and Roberta’s reunion with Stevie/the final Supper Club), but other parts were incredibly difficult to read. And I don’t mean that in terms of their content (although the rape scene and immediate aftermath were heart wrenching), I just mean in terms of actually forcing myself to read it. I started counting down the pages left with nearly 100 to go... so that didn’t help.
I expected the book to be more about female friendships and rebellion against enforced gender norms. And while it was flirted with, it never came to fruition like the description had led me to believe. Roberta has terrible taste in men, is probably in love with Stevie (if she gave herself half a second to really think about it she’d realize that), and seems directionless in a way that feels deeply personal and mildly infuriating. So, it’s an okay book. Nothing spectacular. Nothing horrible. Very much like Roberta herself.

Laura Layden

WINNER of the GUARDIAN 'NOT THE BOOKER' PRIZE 2019 Selected in BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR - Vogue, TIME, Vulture, Woman and Home 'Subversive, radical, written with total glee and rollicking sense of unlimited possibility. Williams is one to watch' Stylist If you feed a starving woman, what will she grow into? Twenty-nine year old Roberta has spent her whole life hungry. So she invents Supper Club: a secret society for women sick of bad men and bad sex. Fed up of being told to talk less, take less, be less, they gather after dark to feast and dance through the night. But as their bodies expand, so do their horizons, their desires - and their urge to break the rules. You look hungry. Join the club. 'Superb... Hilariously funny and deeply moving' Guardian Not the Booker Prize 'Engrossing, ambitious, joyful as well as dark - which is so close to the bone and so necessary. I can't wait to read her next book' Emilie Pine, author of Notes to Self 'Cool and knowing, jam-packed with cultural references, not to mention mouthwatering recipes' Metro 'Daring, funny, humane, delightful. She's the real thing' Sam Jordison, Guardian 'For reading while eating in the bath and licking your lips. There's no other book to read this month' Lit Hub 'Darkly delicious. A celebration of female power and friendship' Sunday Mirror 'Riotous, bold, wild and witty' Sunday Express

Adeline S.

Gemma Copeland

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syadrina

Sara

Rebecca Berg 

Kwan Ann Tan

A sharply intelligent and intimate debut novel about a secret society of hungry young women who meet after dark and feast to reclaim their appetites--and their physical spaces--that posits the question: if you feed a starving woman, what will she grow into? "A visceral and dangerous celebration of feminine appetite and agency. Dark, vivid and infinitely compelling, Williams boldly explores what happens when women dare to cross lines and take up space with their bodies, the hungers and delights to be found in transgression, and the anger and pain we are afraid to claim." --Mona Awad, author of Bunny and 13 Ways of Looking at a Fat Girl Roberta spends her life trying not to take up space. At almost thirty, she is adrift and alienated from life. Stuck in a mindless job and reluctant to pursue her passion for food, she suppresses her appetite and recedes to the corners of rooms. But when she meets Stevie, a spirited and effervescent artist, their intense friendship sparks a change in Roberta, a shift in her desire for more. Together, they invent the Supper Club, a transgressive and joyous collective of women who gather to celebrate, rather than admonish, their hungers. They gather after dark and feast until they are sick; they break into private buildings and leave carnage in their wake; they embrace their changing bodies; they stop apologizing. For these women, each extraordinary yet unfulfilled, the club is a way to explore, discover, and push the boundaries of the space they take up in the world. Yet as the club expands, growing both in size and rebellion, Roberta is forced to reconcile herself to the desire and vulnerabilities of the body--and the past she has worked so hard to repress. Devastatingly perceptive and savagely funny, Supper Club is an essential coming-of-age story for our times.

Max &
Supper Club by Lara Williams

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Supper Club by Lara Williams