In the Dream House

A Memoir

By: Carmen Maria Machado

Narrated by: Carmen Maria Machado

Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

In the Dream House is Carmen Maria Machado's engrossing and wildly innovative account of a relationship gone bad, and a bold dissection of the mechanisms and cultural representations of psychological abuse. Tracing the full arc of a harrowing relationship with a charismatic but volatile woman, Machado struggles to make sense of how what happened to her shaped the person she was becoming. 

And it's that struggle that gives the book its original structure: each chapter is driven by its own narrative trope - the haunted house, erotica, the bildungsroman - through which Machado holds the events up to the light and examines them from different angles. She looks back at her religious adolescence, unpacks the stereotype of lesbian relationships as safe and utopian, and widens the view with essayistic explorations of the history and reality of abuse in queer relationships.  

Machado's dire narrative is leavened with her characteristic wit, playfulness, and openness to inquiry. She casts a critical eye over legal proceedings, fairy tales, Star Trek, and Disney villains, as well as iconic works of film and fiction. The result is a wrenching, riveting book that explodes our ideas about what a memoir can do and be.

©2019 Carmen Maria Machado (P)2019 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

A Gift. Truly.

The writing is tremendously brilliant. It is a powerful elixir of pain and strength. I moved through this book hungrily and am so glad to have done so. I was excited that it was narrated by Carmen herself but ultimately did find her narration a bit flat. Still adore this book though. I used to stare at the physical copy that sat in a place I have come to perceive at my “dream house” and brought it with me when I moved; a reminder and memorial.

Beautiful

Harsh and beautiful. I don't think I can give a better review than that.

One of the most moving books I’ve read in a long time

Absolutely stunning and read beautifully by the author. Highly recommend a listen, but do take care of your mental health and take breaks if you need to, because it’s heavy.

Haunting albeit beautiful

I cannot imagine simply reading this book. Once I learned that Carmen Maria Machado did her own audible reading, I knew I wanted to listen. I read her words from my copy of her book as she spoke them in her own voice... metered and authentic.

wow wow wow!

What an amazing and important book. It took me a few chapters to get into it, but afterwards I could not put it down. Beautiful writing and captivating story that hurt at times and felt incredibly relatable. Thank you for writing this, Carmen.

Difficult subject mastered with amazing style.

Very moving, but that is not half of it. The way Carmen associates images in an almost stream of consciousness manner gives amazing insite into her mind. It made me want to read everything she ever wrote. I am hungry for anything so well written.

Wow just wow

This book will be with me for years to come - only now discovering Carmen’s work wish I had sooner.

Incredible prose on a devastating topic

This book explores a queer relationship and the abuse in that relationship. And I didn’t think I could handle listening. But I loved it. Machado’s incredible prose weaves in such a stunning way. My attention span loved the little snippets.

💜

In the Dream House addresses several ideas; some of these concepts are surviving psychological/physical abuse, isolation, relationships, identity, desire, and lesbian relationships. This memoir is a testimony of domestic abuse, it sheds light on aspects that are commonly misunderstood, overlooked, and popularly ignored. Unfortunately, it is difficult for humanity to perceive domestic abuse due to fortunate inexperience, but as a result, the insidious nature of it is downplayed or not recognized. Blaming the victim is an all too prevalent result. “Why didn't you just leave?” “Why did you put up with it that long.” "Didn't you realize what was happening?”

Dream House as a Natural Disaster (188-189) summatively compares the toxic/abusive relationship to choices surrounding living near a volcano. Overall, the memoir shows how one is blind-sighted in love, to have the carpet pulled from beneath oneself, and confusingly wrapped tightly around their person in an entrapment. The memoir, if given the opportunity, answers the blaming questions of why and how; it makes clear the subtle but gradual growth of psychological and physical abuse. It serves as a blueprint of domestic abuse that often is not recognized or defined in society.

Nuanced and sensitive

It takes a minute to get adjust to Carmen’s drawl-y reading style but I loved this book for its sensitivity to the time it takes to recognize and reconcile yourself with emotional abuse in somebody you love