Over the summer, I kept getting posts popping up on my feed talking about "weird girl lit". Books like Bunny by Mona Awad, Boy Parts by Eliza Clark, Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado, etc.

Big Swiss by Jen Beagin was also a common occurrence on these lists and caught my attention, marking my first step into the world of weird girl lit. So let's talk about it. I'll give you a quick spoiler-free recap of what the book is about, and talk about my feelings at the end.

Instead, Greta quit therapy. Then she quit her job, ended her relationship, moved across the country, and switched careers.

Greta is a 45-year-old woman who has just come out of a long-term, unfulfilling relationship and is starting life fresh across the country.

Everyone behaved as if they’d been banished from their native country, or had simply withdrawn allegiance, or were on the lam, and now that they were all living abroad, they bonded with people they never would’ve ended up with back home.

She moves to a small, weird town, and is working as a transcriptionist for the local therapist. While doing this, she becomes obsessed with a 25-year-old client whom she has nicknamed "Big Swiss."

Big Swiss: Do you think I could get a copy of this transcript at some point?

Therapist: Sure, of course.

Big Swiss: I had a transcript of my grand jury testimony, but it was destroyed in a flood.

Therapist: Was it something you looked at often?

Big Swiss: Never. But I liked having it in a drawer.

Big Swiss is in therapy after a traumatuc event. The above quote occurs after she finally talks about it in a session. There were a few quotes throughout the book that really stuck with me, and this conversation was one of them. She also talks pretty extensively about not letting her trauma define her and not wanting to use it as a reason for her doing anything. I found it deeply, deeply relatable and this idea in particular made me take pause. As much as you want to move on, there is something important about having 'proof' of it happening. I don't think I can really explain the feeling beyond that. If you know, you know - I guess?

"I miss you. Grievously."

I won't provide any context for this, but the word grievously has become my new favorite adverb.

_________

Anyway. All in all. Was this book weird? HELL YES. There were a lot of insane descriptions, jump scare esque trauma dumping, and half the time I couldn't tell if we were speaking literally or metaphorically. I have no idea what happened in this book and this book has the definition of an unreliable narrator. It was often times gross yet intriguing. It also gave very ugly truths in such plain language that it felt like a slap to the face.

Check the trigger warnings before reading! I'd recommend it if you're wanting a unique reading experience that explores the lasting impacts of trauma and how people cope.

Do you have weird girl lit that you recommend? I tagged the other books that are on my TBR for this series. Let me know your thoughts!