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    Hysteria
    Hysteria
    Hysteria
    Audiobook5 hours

    Hysteria

    Written by Jessica Gross

    Narrated by Kaley Whittemore

    3/5

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    About this audiobook

    Hysteria was included in Refinery29’s “Best Books of Summer” and Lit Hub’s “Best New Books of Summer”. As described by Courtney Maum, “If Ottessa Moshfegh and Phoebe Waller-Bridge painted the town red together, this could be the fictive product of their evening out."

    In Hysteria, we meet a young woman an hour into yet another alcohol-fueled, masochistic, sexual bender at her local bar. There is a new bartender working this time, one she hasn't seen before, but who can properly make a drink. He looks familiar, and as she is consumed by shame from her behavior the previous week— hooking up with her parents' colleague and her roommate's brother— she also becomes convinced that her Brooklyn bartender is actually Sigmund Freud. They embark on a relationship, and she is forced to confront her past through the prism of their complex, revealing, and sometimes shocking meetings. With the help of Freud—or whoever he is—she begins to untangle her Oedipal leanings, her upbringing, and her desires. Jessica Gross's debut is unflinchingly perceptive and honest, darkly funny, and unafraid of mining the deepest fears of contemporary lives.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherEverand Productions
    Release dateAug 18, 2020
    ISBN9781094411798
    Author

    Jessica Gross

    Jessica Gross’s writing has appeared in The Los Angeles Review of Books, The New York Times Magazine, and The Paris Review Daily, among other places. She holds an MFA in fiction from The New School, a Master’s degree in cultural reporting and criticism from New York University and a Bachelor’s in anthropology from Princeton University. She has received fellowships in fiction from the Yiddish Book Center (2017) and the 14th Street Y (2015-16), where she also served as editor of the LABA Journal. She currently teaches writing at Eugene Lang College at The New School. Hysteria is her first novel.

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    Reviews for Hysteria

    3/5

    252 ratings23 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      It's a short book and the only one I have ever read that conveyed so vividly certain inner experiences of constant panic, fear of rejection, and longing for understanding and connection along with the belief that it will never happen. The author said she wrote it so that others who could relate would feel less alone, and I am glad that I read it when I did.
    • 1/5
      No no no, just NO. The cover gives such a false sense of this actually being an enjoyable book. Nope.
    • 3/5
      It’s just hard to get into. Love the vibe of the title and cover. That’s the main reason I started it.
    • 4/5
      Wow. This was hard to listen to, but not in the way a lot of reviewers are saying.

      The narrator is suffering from some serious trauma and parental distance, and the story is more about her final spiral of self destruction into self discovery.

      I enjoyed it because I could relate. But if I couldn’t relate I wouldn’t have liked it. Reader beware, this isn’t a happy story; it’s gritty, honest, and broke my heart a little, but it was very good.
    • 5/5
      I have seen a few reviews that didn't like the narrator. I LOVE HER VOICE AND HOW SHE TOLD THE STORY!!
    • 4/5
      Have you ever done something wrong and felt like you might have to deal with the consequences in the upcoming days? Have you imagined senario after senario and screwed up most of the tasks you were supposed to perform that day?
      This book feels like that spiral of thoughts to me... no murders involved but psychological thriller vibes
      Looking forward to future books from this author!
    • 1/5
      I tried to like this book. The narrator made it worse.
    • 3/5
      This is one of the weirdest books I’ve ever read.
    • 1/5
      The only thing good about this book is the cover.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5
      After making it through almost 5 chapters i gave up. This storyline is denented, never gathers speed and is solely the ridiculous thoughts of a distutbed/weird/wacko woman. Nothing like advertised in the description.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5
      I had fun listening to it at work bc it’s alittle smutty but honestly not enough smut. I needed the author to commit to the bit! The main characters “acting-out” isn’t really that scandalous or raunchy. However, one doesn’t need to be a raging slut as a woman to feel shame. Shame is plentiful in the most mundane of circumstances and the author does good at illustrating that.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 3/5
      really disliked the voice acting of the audiobook narrator – i think i would have enjoyed the book more if i read it printed

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Never got to listen to it. It was paused and couldn’t get it back on. Somehow sleep timer was put on and couldn’t get that off. Second time this happened. Not happy about it. Need help.
    • 1/5
      I feel it isn’t fair to judge a book that I didn’t finish.

      I made an exception for this book. I simply got tired of hearing about her masturbating.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 4/5
      I find myself to be at a loss for words. This was definitely something else. The synopsis was what intrigued me the most about the book and I'm glad I picked it up. This was a brilliant debut.
      This would probably be the first time I've read from the perspective of this unreliable a narrator.
      The book is very concise. It doesn't focus on any unnecessary details. It did make me super uncomfortable so head's up it is a little nsfw. The author links the narrator's present lustful feelings with her history with her parents, especially her dad bordering on being Oedipal. She draws parallels between the narrator's desire and her daughterhood. But it doesn't just portray the narrator's misdeeds and her promiscuity for the hell of it and also does not paint her in a bad light. The book makes her question her behaviour and find out why she is the way she is.
      The part with Sigmund Freud as a bartender was the highlight. The book's about the narrator confronting her emotions and feelings that she's buried and finding out who she is.
      I feel like this book might be a hit or miss as I don't think the main character and her appalling behaviour is everyone's cup of tea.
      I would have to add that Kaley Whittemore had the perfect voice for the narrator. It made for such a great, amusing and enjoyable experience. Her voice gave the words the perfect feel.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Just not good, reads like a horny 12 year old's first draft

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Fucking love this crazy book. Kinda related to it so much it's scary. Beautifully written. So excited to read more from this author

      1 person found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Didn’t make it through the first chapter. The narration was difficult to listen to, much too clipped and heavy on consonants. And I quickly tired of the woman and her sexcapades

      4 people found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Dnf






      DNF






    • 2/5
      I tried to give this a chance. I wanted to like it. But the protagonist just drolls on and on about her sexual exploits, which somehow manages to be incredibly boring. Not sure if there was ever a point to the story, I couldn’t get past the first few chapters.
    • 5/5
      At first I was taken aback at the content, but stay with it. The book explores Freud’s Oedipus Complex. The book was very intriguing, and arrives at an appropriate conclusion. Keep reading until the end.

      2 people found this helpful

    • 5/5
      I really liked this book. You can understand what she thinks and the author didn’t hold back any thoughts and said everything that came to mind

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Honest look at a woman's internal musings and self-doubt spiralling out of control.

      1 person found this helpful