Trigger warnings: References to various kinds of abuse
Synopsis: There are no more monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. With doting parents and a best friend named Redemption, Jam has grown up with this lesson all her life. But when she meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colours and claws, who emerges from one of her mother's paintings and a drop of Jam's blood, she must reconsider what she's been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster, and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption's house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also to uncover the truth, and the answer to the question-How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?
In their riveting and timely young adult debut, acclaimed novelist Akwaeke Emezi asks difficult questions about what choices a young person can make when the adults around them are in denial.
Review: Pet follows the story of Jam as she lives in a world that used to be inhabited by monsters. They have since disappeared, but then a creature from one of her mom's paintings appears saying that it is looking for a monster. I really enjoyed the dynamic between Pet and Jam. Seeing them interact as they try to understand each other was fascinating. Jam had to learn some hard truths about her tight community which gave her a great opportunity for character growth. As short as Pet is, you can clearly see the dynamics of the characters here, and you can see Jam's evolution. Pet and Redemption also get some development as they both seem singularly focused on one form of punishment for monsters, but Jam helps them to see other outcomes.
I'll be honest, I didn't really know what Pet was about before I read it. I just knew a lot of people were reading and enjoying it. After Pet comes out of the painting, I had hope that this story would be about household abuse and hidden monsters, and I was right. One of my favorite things is how horrific Pet looks, but it isn't a monster. Compared to people in Jam's community who look like humans, but there are monsters within the humans. There are also different kinds of monsters like the people who know bad things are happening, but they let the bad things continue to happen.
Beautiful and interesting look at how abuse can be hidden by humans.
4.5 howls
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