Camille DeAngelis novel Bones and All was captivating. I read the novel after having watched the movie three times, and analyzing the changes between the two was fascinating. Camille's writing style is simple and beautiful; little recurring details complete the almost aesthetic-like quality of the way she describes Maren's journey, eg. how the detachment Maren feels from the real/rest of the world manifests in the Narnia references, the isolation of a "Spare Oom," etc. In fact, the whole book is lonely, from the way it deals with belief in God (abandonment), to the fact that Maren never has had friends and eats anyone who gets close to her. There are tons of metaphors to be drawn out of the cannibalism in the film, such as queerness, mental illness, disability, abuse, and generational trauma, but perhaps a few about feminism, eating disorders, and sexuality from the novel as well.

Speaking of metaphors, I had the pleasure of seeing Camille DeAngelis in conversation with screenwriter David Kajganich in October about adapting the novel, and one thing Camille lamented was the fact that the intentional metaphor for veganism wasn't clear in the book. I agree--I would never have guessed that at all without her saying it. However the film really does make this explicit and I highly recommend giving it a watch with that message in mind.

SPOILERS BELOW for both the book and film:

Spoiler

It was a terrifying twist that Sully ended up being Maren's grandfather. In some ways, I miss this not being in the film because it adds a layer of Sully's particular brand of creepiness where the family "disease" is inherent, passed through blood, tied to violence (perhaps an incest/CSA metaphor? adding to the sense of generational trauma?). Instead, the film has Maren's mother attack her in the mental hospital as the "one thing she can still do" for Maren to solve the problem of their cannibalism--a moment that gave me chills and served the same function as what the book did with Sully in a more accute form. Admittedly, this change did make Sully's role a little more random in the movie, but it still worked. I admire how the book tied it all together with this sense of "family is hell" (har har, supernatural/eric kripke reference).

Spoiler

My one qualm about the novel is that the ending is a little confusing. For all the struggle Maren has had over her condition, how has she suddenly come to terms with it? Why does Lee's death not cause more of an emotional dent, for someone she spent a long time with? Overall, I'm not upset with it that much because of the beautiful, BEAUTIFUL way the movie changed Lee's death into something explicit, with Kajganich's dialogue from Lee, "It's the easiest thing, Maren, love. Just love me and eat." Dialogue was one of DeAngelis's weak spots for sure, but the story was amazing, and thus, 4 stars!