Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma

For the first 1-2 chapters, this book seemed more like a memoir rather than a work of literary criticism, and I wasn't a fan. But the author delved into the primary aspects of the book soon enough, and it improved significantly. Towards the last chapters the author's memoirist voice became more prominent again, and the main argument seemed underdeveloped. Instead of discussing the consumption of the artist's work and dealing with the problematic aspects of the artist's personal life, some parts were overly convoluted, focusing excessively on the admiration for the artist at a superficial level. This was unexpected from a book of literary criticism. Initially, I wasn't too fond of the open-endedness in each chapter, but after the author's explanation on the topic of subjectivity and personal experience, I gained more clarity on that. However the thesis, pointing to “there's no ethical consumption under consumerism” seemed rather lazy and uncreative. Coupled with the author's excessive sentimentality towards some of the artists, repeatedly expressing “I love him” I had hoped for a deeper exploration of this topic, combining both logical analysis and subjective viewpoints. I expected more exploration of the parasocial relationship between fans and problematic artists, as well as more rigorous explanations on capitalism's influence on our consumption habits, especially concerning specific artists.

I would rate this book 3.5 stars out of 5