Name: Lee's review of Body Grammar by Jules Ohman
Item: Body Grammar
Rating: 2
Author: Lee

Jules Ohman

A coming-of-age queer love story set in the glamorous but grueling world of international modeling—a "terrific debut ... roiling with deep questions of identity and art, love, and the irrepressible need for meaning in life" (Jess Walter, bestselling author of The Cold Millions)

By the time Lou turns eighteen, modeling agents across Portland have scouted her for her striking androgynous look. Lou has no interest in fashion or being in the spotlight. She prefers to take photographs, especially of Ivy, her close friend and secret crush.
 
But when a hike ends in a tragic accident, Lou finds herself lost and ridden with guilt. Determined to find a purpose, Lou moves to New York and steps into the dizzying world of international fashion shows, haute couture, and editorial shoots. It’s a whirlwind of learning how to walk and how to command a body she’s never felt at ease in. But in the limelight, Lou begins to fear that she’s losing her identity—as an individual, as an artist, and as a person still in love with the girl she left behind. 
 
A sharply observed and intimate story of grief and healing, doubt and self-acceptance set against the hyper-image-conscious industry of modeling and high fashion, Body Grammar shines with the anxieties of finding your place in the world and the heartbreaking beauty of pursuing love. 

A Novel

Body Grammar

Genesis (@whisperingchapters)

Something I should’ve loved: lesbianism, fashion, New York, friendship, love, and loss. Yet I was so beyond disappointed. Every character was frustrating—other than Megan and Catherine—and had no sense of redemption come resolution. The few great lines did not outweigh the messy prose, cringe humor, and almost twitter-timeline dialogue. Where themes of grief and guilt could have been explored, they were left barely cracked at the surface and forgotten about until the end. Over 300 pages that could’ve been cut down to 150—a greatly unsatisfactory read.

kate humphreys 

genuinely cannot decide between a 4.5 and a 5 star rating with this one - wOW did this make me feel things and wow have i underlined nearly the entire novel - i don’t even know where to begin on how wonderful this read was so let’s just say that a large itch in my brain was scratched by reading a sapphic literary fiction novel about a androgynous and anxious lesbian named lou who is secretly in love with her best friend and flees to new york to escape trauma and a crisis of identity (also her favorite stuffed animal is an orca??) this was quite literally written for me.

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Body Grammar by Jules Ohman

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Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &Body Grammar by Jules Ohman

Reviews

Join the club

Genesis (@whisperingchapters) &
Body Grammar by Jules Ohman