ARC
Disclaimer: I won an ARC of this on Librarything.
Disfigured is one of those books that isn’t quite what you thought it was going to be, but that’s fine because it is a damn good book. When I entered the early review giveaway, I thought or imagine it to be more of a critique of how disability was presented in the fairy tales, the book, however, is not entirely that so less literary criticism and more a personal reflection about how fairy tales influenced how society sees disability (both physical and mental). She also addresses fairy tale in wider range – the use of Marvel movies for instance.
The important thing is that Leduc’s book makes how you view the tales in their various inactions differently but also the stories affect those who read them as well as how society views disability.
The weakest part oft eh book is the section that deals with Marvel superheroes, in particular those from the MCU. This isn’t because a discussion of superheroes isn’t relevant in the discussion of fairy tales, but how the discussion takes place. For the most part, the discussion seems limited to Marvel heroes as they are portrayed in the movies, which means in the discussion about Captain (Ms.) Marvel the alcoholism and the depowerment are not mentioned. And this feels off, at least the depowerment. War Machine, too, is not mentioned. (DC isn’t either). This is also slightly true of her discussion of Riqut with the Tuft, where the daughter who is ugly but smart gets dropped by everyone when the pretty daughter gets brains. That daughter should have been mentioned.
Those two caveats aside, the book is good. The discussion about Disney – both live action and animated is important, especially in the discussion of Maleficent and the loss of her wings. While the boom might not be a totally break though in how to look at tales, it does directly address the important factor of representation. While some readers might find the book to be too memoir oriented, this is important because it shows how a key part of childhood is seen by some children and the influence it might have later in life.
Disfigured is one of those books that isn’t quite what you thought it was going to be, but that’s fine because it is a damn good book. When I entered the early review giveaway, I thought or imagine it to be more of a critique of how disability was presented in the fairy tales, the book, however, is not entirely that so less literary criticism and more a personal reflection about how fairy tales influenced how society sees disability (both physical and mental). She also addresses fairy tale in wider range – the use of Marvel movies for instance.
The important thing is that Leduc’s book makes how you view the tales in their various inactions differently but also the stories affect those who read them as well as how society views disability.
The weakest part oft eh book is the section that deals with Marvel superheroes, in particular those from the MCU. This isn’t because a discussion of superheroes isn’t relevant in the discussion of fairy tales, but how the discussion takes place. For the most part, the discussion seems limited to Marvel heroes as they are portrayed in the movies, which means in the discussion about Captain (Ms.) Marvel the alcoholism and the depowerment are not mentioned. And this feels off, at least the depowerment. War Machine, too, is not mentioned. (DC isn’t either). This is also slightly true of her discussion of Riqut with the Tuft, where the daughter who is ugly but smart gets dropped by everyone when the pretty daughter gets brains. That daughter should have been mentioned.
Those two caveats aside, the book is good. The discussion about Disney – both live action and animated is important, especially in the discussion of Maleficent and the loss of her wings. While the boom might not be a totally break though in how to look at tales, it does directly address the important factor of representation. While some readers might find the book to be too memoir oriented, this is important because it shows how a key part of childhood is seen by some children and the influence it might have later in life.
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