This is my first Mona Awad and I was not sure what to expect, it was a bit like a fever dream and half of the time I was reading it I was on drugs too (the doctor approved kind, I was in the hospital).
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| ★★★★☆ |
Bunny follows Samantha, a creative writing student, as she tries her best to survive another year in this very exclusive writing program. The problem is not only the program per se, but the rest of her colleagues in her group: four rich girls that call each other "Bunny". The previous year they constantly critiqued Samantha's writing, when they weren't ignoring her, but this year... this year they invite her to one of their soirée. Should Samantha go down the bunny whole?
"Why do you lie so much? And about the weirdest little things?", my mother always asked me. "I don’t know", I always said. But I did know. It was very simple. Because it was a better story."
Go In Blindly, Bunny
The reason why I find it so hard to talk about this book is because I truly believe the best way to experience Bunny is by going into it knowing as little as possible about it. Just enjoy the ride. The first few chapters will be harder to get through and a touch annoying - it reads very YA-like, but you need to persevere, Bunny! Because the fun is just about to start!
The writing does get better, or maybe it was the drugs or the slightly claustrophobic atmosphere or the general anxiety inducing plot of the novel. It's dark and it gets darker, it's creepy at times, but fascinating and it plays with themes from romanticism to eroticism to female friendship. It's funny and it's witty. Enjoy the ride, Bunny!
"I've never really not written, never not had another world of my own making to escape to, never known how to be in this world without most of my soul dreaming up and living in another."
Pink Academia
Surprisingly enough this book reminded me a lot of Donna Tartt's Secret History and although it's quite dark at times, I still like to call it "pink academia". Don't you agree, Bunny? We have the poor student and the rich clique that's quite hard to approach and there is even that winter chapter that gives off the same vibe. Intentional or not, I loved all these similarities. But Bunny is playing with some darker forces at times (darker than murder, yes, but still cute, Bunny) and it's highly creative. Fever dream, remember?
The influences on Bunny are numerous and not just limited to The Secret History. There is a bit of Mean Girls (naturally), a bit of Heathers, a bit of Frankenstein thrown into the mix - and obviously some Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass (I mean, she had to). It's all kind of messed up, but in a thrilling and delicious manner.
"We never joke about bunnies, Bunny."
Experimental and Strange
A satire of sorts, Bunny is... quite strange. And peculiar. And bizarre. And odd. And all the other synonyms for weird that you can think of. But it's not strange in the sense of not making sense. What I am trying to say, Bunny, is that you will feel lost throughout reading this novel and you will question where the plot is going or if maybe the author lost the plot (or some marbles).
At times uneven and with an unbalanced pacing, in the end it's a lot of fun - a lot of weird fun in a weird kind of way. But it might leave many people unsatisfied; it's definitely not everyone's cup of tea (or cupcake). Personally, I loved it and it only made me want to read more Mona Awad.
"But I wasn't listening. I wasn't stopping. Because we were already running away again, me and my imagination."
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