Consent : A Memoir Of Unwanted Attention

This book would be very hard me to review, as I will speak from my perspective and also I will try to be as objective as possible but it is still my opinion.

It’s a memoir of how a PhD student got the unwanted attention of one of her teachers.

As something that seems very innocent as a start turns into a dark obsession.

Now, I do not want to discredit any experiences she has lived BUT, I do not think using metaphors referring to actual act of rape to describe the fact that you receive an unwanted letter is relevant.

    

The prose feels very robotic and all of sudden, very dramatic.  As if she needs to justify to us that receiving a creepy letter is as bad as someone who raped her (see the quote below).  The fact is, it is not. This will speak highly and be very frustrating to people who have suffered the physical trauma. I would totally understand if she was going with the psychological trauma, the paranoia and stays with it. Because it is as important to mention the mental state while being stalked. I would prefer that direction to the trying-very-hard to justify every single thing like a physical abuse. 

“I allowed the article in my house (Consent?) I placed it on the coffee table. (Also consent.Right?) […] I made him promises that I would read. (Is there consent when there is also cringing? When he is begging? ) But I also resisted touching that yellow envelope. (I did not want to consent to it.) “

 However, I appreciate the parts where she’s real and vulnerable, showing the aspect of still thinking that what her predator did may not be wrong but if one of her students come to her with the same story, she wouldn’t hesitate one bit to call it toxic. It shows that we always undermined the situations that happen to us and that’s a common trait for a lot of people in this kind of situations.

RATING: 3/5 

Thank you to Hachette Canada for giving me this book to review !