Because I Am Furniture
I was intrigued by this book's title, which is the original reason I picked it up.
It's not the only reason I wound up loving it.
Written in the form of many poems, it was brilliantly captivating. I literally picked it up and didn't put it down until I had finished.
I have to add that I didn't realize it was written in poems until I got it home from the library. When I opened it, I was skeptical. I usually don't enjoy books written in poem form…they scare me. I always feel like I'm missing something, or like there's some deeper meaning that I'm just not getting. I actually almost put it down.
What a mistake that would have been.
Not only are the main character, Anke's, experiences and feelings expressed in a totally unique and beautiful voice; but the physical representation of her thoughts, (the placement of the words on the page) evoke layers upon layers of emotion.
Anke's father is abusive to her mother, sister, brother…but never to her. "Because to him, she is like furniture- part of the background, invisible."
It's a harrowing display of abuse. Described from Anke's perspective, it drew me in…I was utterly at Anke's disposal. I couldn't put it down. I was as intrigued by Anke's actions as I was disgusted by her father's.
In preparation for writing this review, I visited the author's website, http://www.thaliachaltas.com/ and was very pleasantly surprised to read her bio and find that her favorite line is from one of my favorite movies/books, The Princess Bride: "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
This is one of those books that I must buy…just so I can read it over and over again, write in the margins, highlight my favorite parts and just generally dissect the thing until I love it and know it even more than the first time I read it.
I'll leave you with an excerpt.
"I mean,
WHY can't she just tell on him?
It's just words.
Just
open her mouth
and out come those words.
And then he'd be stopped.
Right?"
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