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I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself
- Author
- Marisa Crane
- Narrator
- Bailey Carr
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 17 January 2023
- Run Time
- 8 hours 30 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
Dept. of Speculation meets Black Mirror in this lyrical, speculative debut about a queer mother raising her daughter in an unjust surveillance state
In a United States not so unlike our own, the Department of Balance has adopted a radical new form of law enforcement: rather than incarceration, wrongdoers are given a second (and sometimes, third, fourth, and fifth) shadow as a reminder of their crime—and a warning to those they encounter. Within the Department, corruption and prejudice run rampant, giving rise to an underclass of so-called Shadesters who are disenfranchised, publicly shamed, and deprived of civil rights protections.
Kris is a Shadester and a new mother to a baby born with a second shadow of her own. Grieving the loss of her wife and thoroughly unprepared for the reality of raising a child alone, Kris teeters on the edge of collapse, fumbling in a daze of alcohol, shame, and self-loathing. Yet as the kid grows, Kris finds her footing, raising a child whose irrepressible spark cannot be dampened by the harsh realities of the world. She can’t forget her wife, but with time, she can make a new life for herself and the kid, supported by a community of fellow misfits who defy the Department to lift one another up in solidarity and hope.
With a first-person register reminiscent of the fierce self-disclosure of Sheila Heti and the poetic precision of Ocean Vuong, I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself is a bold debut novel that examines the long shadow of grief, the hard work of parenting, and the power of queer resistance.
Critics Review
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“Bailey Carr gently narrates this dystopian audiobook…[and] voices Kris’s grief with realism and depth…Carr’s voice for Kris’s daughter is adorably youthful and strong…These characters will resonate with listeners.”
AudioFile
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“Offers a fresh peek at our dystopian future.”
Ms. Magazine
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“The novel stands out in its poetic reporting on the everyday experience of living under incessant observation and enforcement.”
Chicago Review of Books
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“A not-so-cautionary tale about America’s poor treatment of marginalized people and how it would take little for the country to tip over into fascism.’
Locus
See more reviews See fewer reviews
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"The creation of family, criminalization, and queer resistance. Readers will be moved and electrified.”
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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“On the surface, it’s all explosive force; underneath, it’s introspective and intimate.”
BookPage (starred review)
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“Vailey Carr narrates this poetic novel, sensitively voicing Kris’s hope and heartbreak, while also capturing the idealism and vivacity of her daughter.”
Library Journal (audio review)
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"A soft yet fierce narrative of queer resistance and abolitionist feeling.”
Booklist
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“Skillfully probes the complexities of loss, love, and injustice…[and] convincingly leans toward hope…An anthem for queer love and solidarity that rises above the dystopian cacophony.”
Kirkus Reviews
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“Phenomenal.”
Daily Kos
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“Crane’s blend of grief, humor, and imagination is fearless.”
Megan Giddings, author of The Women Could Fly
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“A masterpiece: mordantly funny, brilliantly queer, large-hearted.”
Alex Marzano-Lesnevich, author of The Fact of a Body
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“Kris is an unforgettable guide through the novel’s speculative world, at once hilarious and heart-sick.”
Laura van den Berg, author of I Hold a Wolf by the Ears
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“As innovative as it is boldly honest…Offers us a speculative world that refracts, mirrors, and expands our own.”
Carolina De Robertis, author of The President and the Frog
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“Crane’s sharp and funny dystopian novel explores how easy it is to become our worst selves and how hard it is to recover from life-changing mistakes.”
Isle McElroy, author of The Atmospherians
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Marisa Crane
- Narrator
- Bailey Carr
- Duration
- 8 hours 30 minutes
- Release Date
- 17 January 2023
- ISBN
- 9798212236898
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Dystopian and utopian fiction, Fiction: general and literary, Science fiction: apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic
Synopsis
Dept. of Speculation meets Black Mirror in this lyrical, speculative debut about a queer mother raising her daughter in an unjust surveillance stateIn a United States not so unlike our own, the Department of Balance has adopted a radical new form of law enforcement: rather than incarceration, wrongdoers are given a second (and sometimes, third, fourth, and fifth) shadow as a reminder of their crime—and a warning to those they encounter. Within the Department, corruption and prejudice run rampant, giving rise to an underclass of so-called Shadesters who are disenfranchised, publicly shamed, and deprived of civil rights protections.Kris is a Shadester and a new mother to a baby born with a second shadow of her own. Grieving the loss of her wife and thoroughly unprepared for the reality of raising a child alone, Kris teeters on the edge of collapse, fumbling in a daze of alcohol, shame, and self-loathing. Yet as the kid grows, Kris finds her footing, raising a child whose irrepressible spark cannot be dampened by the harsh realities of the world. She can’t forget her wife, but with time, she can make a new life for herself and the kid, supported by a community of fellow misfits who defy the Department to lift one another up in solidarity and hope.With a first-person register reminiscent of the fierce self-disclosure of Sheila Heti and the poetic precision of Ocean Vuong, I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself is a bold debut novel that examines the long shadow of grief, the hard work of parenting, and the power of queer resistance.
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