As a large outlier, I realize that my putting this out has a lot to do with just my own reading of this. I ended up DNF’ing it at 56% percent because of a few reasons.

I truly despised all of the characters, despite the fact that the point is to illustrate systemic misogyny, sexism, racism, nationalistic/cultish structures permeating hockey/team sports. I get it. But I just don’t find them compelling characters and we dip into them Every. Single. Time. perpetuating these shitty structures. The whole, oh, but 20 years from now he will be thinking about this decision, which has haunted him all his life. And now let’s cut to his many, many enablers, who similarly will reflect in years to come, as we float into and out of rape culture. I just don’t want to be there, and what’s more, each aspect actually reads as very performatively to me.

I live in Canada. I live in a small town. I hate hockey. I am aware of and have hated gender performing and patriarchal shit like this my entire life. The last thing I want is to spend time in the heads of these kinds of people. And their characterization feels more like kid gloves to me attempting to humanize them and illustrate the broad things at play. I’m not done it yet, but so far it’s just setting everyone up to be pretty off the hook. The upside is right after this is when the town dehumanizes a rape victim and destroys her further.

Yeah, I’m actually going to just read something else, thanks, though.