My Life as a Rat
A Novel

3.5 stars . This is not an easy book to read. A word of warning - there is child abuse and sexual abuse and violence. I managed to get through these brutal parts of the book and as difficult as it was, I found it to be a powerful story. It’s about family loyalty, betrayals and it’s a stark commentary......more

"No parecía existir equivalente masculino para -montar un número, para exhibirse-. Como tampoco (algo que descubriría más tarde) existe equivalente masculino para zorra, para furcia." A estas alturas no es ningún secreto que Joyce Carol Oates es una de mis autoras favoritas, y por mucho que haya leído......more

JCO made me read it! She's being as visceral as ever in this one. Where her style uniquely fits to call attention to social problems: so very graphic but only up to a point where the reader get to think, a lot. She lets the reader to reach conclusions on their own but firmly steers them to reaching......more

Perhaps, I am just never going to be a fan of Joyce Carol Oates. I found My Life as a Rat pedantic, predictable and a slog to read. All the characters were one-dimensional and the story seemed to want to exploit racism and violence towards young women without really delving sufficiently into the cau......more

Joyce Carol Oats is a name that is always popping up so I thought it was about time I gave her a whirl. This book is cleverly written, I actually had to Google if this was based on a true story as its written almost in the format of a memoir and it feels real. It felt a bit muddled, a bit repetitive......more