Disturbing books: Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

[@meghanmacivor1205]

I consider myself to have a strong stomach but I couldn’t even get through this one 😢 weird thing is the cannibalism didn’t get me it was the animal cruelty. And the fact that the “sympathetic” main character impregnates what is considered livestock within the context of the story and effectively a child in our world. smh

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yes, I agree that things like the ones you mention do stand out. The cannibalism loses its ability to shock after a while.

[@Splif128]

My exact thoughts. I stopped reading at that point. This was also the same day or the day after he had the wild / strange encounter with the lady butcher in front of her “pet”, and was drunk. Completely ended the book for me.

[@jdnjstar19]

i’m a bit late, but i just read the book and i’m pretty sure the woman was 20 wasn’t she?

[@LaguiDai]

The main character isn't meant to be sympathetic, learn to read

[@toeaxn]

She was at least 20 years old, definitely not a child

[@beezus99]

I agree 100%. I think the slight remove with which the story is told makes it more palatable to "normie" readers - I'm a librarian and it has been a very popular title the last year or so. It's a really well written and thought provoking story, and I've heard it has inspired a lot of conversations among readers that don't usually go so dark in their fiction. So, all in all, a great success.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That's really interesting to hear - I think Bazterrica probably pitched the level of disturbingness just right to get the book wide success

[@authenticpoppy]

I finished reading Tender last week! I loved it. It was disturbing, but not in the way I expected. I'm going to reveal a spoiler, so I'll to leave a space here.... Spoiler: As an adoptee from the baby scoop era, I started to anticipate the end of the book from the second Marcos called Cecilia for help. I don't know if the author realizes she parallels the era perfectly, but it's certainly there. The message was a logical expansion of what actually happens when people are treated as less than human.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That's a really interesting comment. Like you I'm not sure on her intentions, but it definitely feels like the kind of thing she is writing about. Glad you liked it!

[@michellesmelancholia]

It's like you've read my mind with this review, completely agree with your take on this book. I'll also add it touches on themes on how each of us as individuals can fall in the trap of thinking we're 'better' or get on our moral high ground because we recognise the abuse and exploitation around us (like the t-shirt example you gave) but when push comes to shove we end up participating in it out of convenience or when we have something to gain....

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That's a great point. I thought it was a really fascinating book and a great mirror for our modern world.

[@Scarshadow666]

Yeah, sadly something I've noticed about the human condition too... 0_0

Whew you said A WORD

[@gspendlove]

Who wouldn't want a world where everyone was a humanitarian?

[@CriminOllyBlog]

😂😂😂😂 that’s brilliant

[@CestKevvie]

YAY I'm so excited to see you finally review this! I fully agree, I was shocked to see this book make the disturbing list tbh... but glad it got you to read it!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

A lot of people suggested it, but yes I didn't find it all that disturbing

[@M-J]

I agree with *almost* everything you said, my friend. The disturbing impact of the book was definitely greater for me as a female reader, for the some scenes I won’t spoil here. Don’t even get me started on the puppies. I LOVED this book and gave it 5/5 stars. 😊 -📚MJ

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Glad you liked it so much! I definitely enjoyed reading it, especially as part of your reading group

[@M-J]

@@CriminOllyBlog I was going to mention that - but didn’t since you finished it before your coffee got cold. ☕️🤭🤗- 📚MJ

[@kimblee1972]

I love disturbing books but this one really messed with my head. Thought it was really well written with very graphic description.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It was definitely a hard one to read at times

[@bjlowe85]

One of your best reviews! Loved the analogy of the news broadcast spot on.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thank you! Really glad you enjoyed it

[@federicolautarohohmann9035]

Random fact: in the original version in spanish, the book is titled "Cadáver exquisito" ("Exquisite corpse").

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I do think that’s a better title, just already taken in English

[@JediJuniper92]

Love your review. Felt very similarly about it and like your wording of a “filter” to describe how visiting this world felt.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Glad it was helpful!

[@negligent_omnicide]

(Speaking of cannibalism…) Have you read The Wanting Seed by Anthony Burgess? Brave New World is a fantastic book; the quintessential dystopian novel. When it comes up in conversation, I often will mention TWS but I have yet to meet someone who has read it. Tho, I suppose it was doomed from the start, having come out around the same time as A Clockwork Orange. It isn’t necessarily brilliant but it offers an interesting vision of the future. Huxley also has another dystopian, but much lesser known, novel called Ape and Essence that is worth a read, as well.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I haven't even heard of that! Burgess does seem to be one of those authors whose entire bibliography is eclipsed by one book.

[@backrowbrighton]

Hi Olly. The subject is probably the greatest taboo in society. Oddly there have been books before exploring the subject in a similar vein. 'Through Darkest America' by Neal Barrett Jr is one. Published in 1987 and tells the story of a post catastrophe world in which a boy is helping his father herd the livestock to slaughter. The latter being humans with their tongues removed. A harrowing read and it did have a sequel called 'Dawn's Uncertain Light'. Also the late film critic Barry Norman wrote a novel called 'End Product' in 1975 and this also deals with humans as livestock. The latter was in my local library back in 1980.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Oh wow, had no idea that Barry Norman had written novels, let alone one about cannibalism!

[@tribalstyle138]

I've been looking for more books like this. I find it very interesting. Read "Animals" meh and "Meat"- which was very good. I'll try End Product. That seems interesting. I find extreme horror compelling but not the sexual stuff which seems like 75% of the books.

[@MrHarryscoots]

spoiler... the thing that i cant decide is whether Marc always intended to do that at the end or not. there are fores and against. the against is that i was convinced they fell in love, if that was his intention why did he treat her "nice"............fore; there was the bit where the stunner before he stuns the heads whispers something in there ear to calm them down. and marc sung summer time to jasmine ( and he named her jasmine!?) which at first i thought was sweet but , was he doing that with foresight ?i dunno. i really liked the book. theres also the reaction to the transition shown through the generations which was a smart way to show how the desensitising process happens. the dad went crazy. marc didn't seem to agree, he seemed kinda indifferent thinking of his family first, aswell as some of the other casts. and the evil twins who joked about it ( eating people) and didn't care at all

[@krc5210]

I just added this to my TBR. It sounds fascinating to me. Also, it sounds like Never Let Me Go. We have been plant-based eaters since 2013, which seems to make some people quite angry, not sure why, but we did it for health reasons and then all the animal treatment info came after. This was a great review covering not only the story but also all the ways we 'don't think' about what we do because otherwise it would be difficult to continue. TY per usual for bringing another book to my attention.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Hope you like it when you come to read it. Some people do seem weirdly threatened by people who live in different ways to them.

[@ToTheWolves]

I love that movie!!!! Top 10 for me. It was so disturbing I could only ever watch it once.

[@HorrorReads]

I loved your thoughts on this book. I loved it and thought it struck a good balance between sending a message about the meat industry and giving us a good horror story at the same time.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah, the message didn't get in the way of the story!

[@InsideKimmysMind]

I've started this book but haven't managed to bring myself to finish it. I think the writing is wonderful and I want to finish it. But don't have the stomach for it.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It is a very hard read at times!

[@badrad9226]

I enjoy some really interesting and disturbing books . I agree , I didn’t think it was that disturbing. It was a great book , more of a explanation on how the meat was produced. I’m glad you read this book 😊 it’s one of the most talked about books .

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah there’s definitely been a big buzz about it and I understand why. I thought it was great

[@badrad9226]

@@CriminOllyBlog fantastic Olly , the next book will be great . I’m thinking about switching it up too

[@hairylittlewombat]

Another informative review, thanks Olly. I've added this to my ever growing list. Sounds fascinating.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thank you - glad you enjoyed the review!

[@dmbfreak123]

Great review. I absolutely loved this book and the authors vision. I honestly thought it was one of the better stories I had read in the last few years.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It was definitely a fascinating read

[@johnward5404]

Idk why this hasn’t made its way to my shelf… oh wait yes I do! Because this guy called criminolly thought it would be a great idea to stop buying books until I actually read the ones I’ve got. Gee thanks!?! Haha jk I have long considered purchasing this one and it seems I’ll continue to consider it strongly. Thanks for the daily content Olly, ur amazing!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Ha ha sorry about that

[@graceglue8913]

I really enjoyed Tender is the Flesh when I read it. The concept was incredible. I really enjoyed the world building, I thought it was well "fleshed" out. In my opinion, it was actually pretty grotesque, but so incredibly written I didn't mind. As far as dystopian settings go, this is probably the worst outcome I could imagine - but - I can't see it being completely dismissed as an option. It really highlighted just how far people are willing to go to live as "normally" as possible.

[@paulaj7860]

Nice 😂

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah it's that desire to maintain the status quo for the majority that is at the heart of the book I think

[@BookBlather]

I’m really looking forward to getting into this one. It’s been sitting in my To be read basket for many months. I actually splurged for the UK version… way nicer than the US one. Great analysis… Now I’m even more excited to read it!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I think you'll really like it!

[@redneckinthebardo]

I recently read this brilliantly written, very compelling book, and I think it's as much about how men treat women and the male drive to dominate and destroy, as it is about humans consuming other sentient beings for food on an industrial scale as we also currently do. The main character's misogyny and utter self absorbtion were apparent from start to finish, so with that, I found the ending totally unsurprising. Through her writing the author makes it clear that most men don't see any female as fully human. Instead, females, and our reproductive abilities, are things to be manipulated, used, consumed, and destroyed.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That's a great point

[@emmaribena5529]

3 months since I read this book. 3 months since I ate meat! I was looking for an excuse to go veggie anyway tbh. Great book!! I really loved it, and, obviously, it made a deep impact on me. thanks for the video as always, Olly.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Oh wow! That's quite an impact! Good for you though, it definitely feels like a positive thing to do given the environmental impacts of meat production

[@leelalo6625]

Great book for my first disturbing book read. I do like watching horror films so this book kept me glued but I was not deeply disturbed. I will be looking into more books of this sub-genre of horror for sure.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

There are definitely more disturbing ones than this - check out my tier ranking video if you haven’t yet

[@rubyjreads7503]

Makes me want to read "Soylent Green" again. Make you think about eating those saltines..lol

[@CriminOllyBlog]

LOL yes definite parallels

[@winstonsmith8236]

I found the casual nature of describing the process extremely affecting. The normality of the this world was the most terrifying aspect.

[@AnnNovella]

Do you want that rare, medium rare or well done? 🤓😉

[@badrad9226]

That’s to funny ! Right ? 😂

[@CriminOllyBlog]

😂

[@amya8155]

Awesome book from the shelf 😂 your reviews are fantastic! Yet another book for my Xmas list now ..

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thank you! Really glad you're enjoying my reviews

[@harrysbookcafe]

Wow, that really sounds disturbing. Can't wait to read it.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Enjoy!

[@Birmanncat]

It's very interesting once you realize what the author has done: merely replacing the word "cow" with "human". Because all the processes discribed in the book are what is really happening to the cows and chickens and so on in the meat industry. But we don't think about it much.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah, we're very much blind to it I think

[@stephnefourie7213]

Agreed I found it disturbing but not in the sense I thought I would going in ! It was a fantastic read thought. Devoured it in a day !

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Devoured is an interesting choice of words!

[@stephnefourie7213]

@@CriminOllyBlog I thought so ;)

[@paulcouillard4993]

I just finished reading "Tender Is The Flesh" by Augustina Bazterrica. It's a science fiction - horror - dystopian novel. I was taken in the narrator's misdirection. I thought that the transformation of Marcos Tejo (the main character) was real, sincere. He morally condemns various bad characters: his sister Marisa, Dr. Valka (who runs the evil "Laboratory") and others. Since this is a dystopian novel heavily influenced by "We" by Yevgeny Zamyatin & by Twilight Zone "Number 12 looks just like you," I expected a bad end, specifically that Marcos would be tricked into entering the slaughterhouse (his impregnation of a "head" [enslaved human bred for the slaughterhouse] having been surreptitiously discovered) where he would himself be slaughtered for his "crime." However this assumed that a surreptitious inspection of his home might have been done which I realized was wrong only near the end. The actual end (that Marcos Tejo was just as morally bad as the other characters) was a shock. So it was a good ending. The novel apparently means to equate neoliberism, capitalism with a cannibalistic society in which humans (especially the poor, old, ugly, disabled, marginalized) are seen as "products" & "things" & "animals" and killed and eaten and, later (when they run low) humans are specifically bred to be eaten. The novel also apparently means to criticize our selfishness; our addiction to meat; our terrible treatment of animals ["Planet of the Apes"]; our treatment of poor, disabled, ugly, marginalized, old people. The novel also remind us how frequently humans make distinctions between "real humans" and "not real humans/animal-like humans" and how deadly these distinctions can be, and how easily humans adjust their attitudes to a new situation even if it normalizes what formerly were considered atrocities, and how humans use the concept "animal" to delegitimate and use euphemisms, concepts, words to eliminate atrocities. This was a good book.

[@amdudley83]

Read it. Wondering why the hell I was reading this half way through. Was glad I finished it, as it really was overall a very interesting and thought provoking story. Great twist at the end I didn’t see coming was the cherry on top.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yea the twist was great

[@stephanieweeks3489]

I love a good horror read and this messed with my head. I didn’t want to eat any type of meat afterwards. I do think the overturning of roe v wade really made this hit harder than usual because the breeding centers were horrifying 😭😭I couldn’t read chapter 6 of part 2 at all, I skimmed it and knew I couldn’t stomach it.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah I think it does a really good job of getting under the skin of our capacity as humans to be boundlessly cruel in the name of convenience.

[@Priscilla_Bettis]

Good review, Olly. "Disturbing" fits, I think.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Definitely! Thanks Priscilla

[@DDB168]

This gives new meaning to the term 'breast man' that's for sure 😉🙃 Is that offside ? The idea, concepts are slightly similar to Soylent Green. My clothes are years old 😉

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That doesn't surprise me (mine are too)

[@eriebeverly]

Interesting review. For me the book was just okay. In knowing the most disturbing "it" about the book from the first page it was like being air lifted and dropped off on top of the mountain you maybe should have climbed.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That is a really great analogy!

[@garysscaryfaeries3046]

I really enjoyed this book, the ending just pissed me off though. Very interesting concept

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It was definitely a twist

[@ToTheWolves]

Doesn't sound more disturbing than what happens now anyway.

[@ToTheWolves]

Great analysis of the lack of conscience in capitalism and commercialism.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thank you!

[@Scarshadow666]

Sadly true. -_-

[@troytradup]

Soylent Green! This is probably an inappropriate reaction, but with 8 billion in the world, it feels like human should be pretty cheap.

[@joanthompson5606]

Trouble is, we already are. Maybe that's an underlying theme of the cannibalism: how utterly worthless the "top 1%" consider that the rest of us are. The next worst thing to being eaten is being enslaved, and slavery is still going on all over the world! The further down the birth rate goes, the more valuable each human becomes. 😕💀🥴 I haven't read the book yet so I may be full of 💩 !

[@CriminOllyBlog]

No, I think your assessment is pretty accurate!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I still haven't read or seen that!

[@Robbo_C]

@@CriminOllyBlog The book is called Make Room! Make Room!, and it is quite good. The movie is fine also, and it features Edward G. Robinson's final, and I think best, film performance. It brought me to tears.

[@troytradup]

@@Robbo_C Plus, no one does end of humanity quite like Chuck Heston!

[@kevinjudge8406]

I'm liking but not watching this video, if that makes sense, because I just picked up the book from a charity shop and do not want any spoilers. I really admire the book challenges the community has committed to, but some of them have hinted that it will take years. A gesture of goodwill might be to donate 10p for every book read in a challenge so that charity shops don't miss out from this ban on browsing! 😄

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That’s a good idea!

[@oliverbehegan]

Yep, really enjoyed(?) reading this book. Not as disturbing as is could have been, which is probably its strength. I wonder how Shaun Hutson would handle such a concept...?

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Ha! Yeah Shaun Hutson's version would be very different!

[@clairebear9517]

Finally finished reading this, after seeing this video I was intrigued but it has such a sense of creeping dread that I had to work up to finishing. The end is really sudden, not totally satisfying but unsurprising too. I can say this is one book that would be useful for anyone wanting to go vegan l, but it raises a lot of ethical questions. The detached, matter of fact delivery is what makes this particularly horrific and I will be thinking about this for quite a while.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah it's definitely a book that might put you off meat eating. Thanks for watching and sorry it took me so long to reply!

[@davidmajor5393]

Just reading this now. It's gruesome but very readable

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yes, it's very well written and translated

[@morticiaaddams9777]

I finally managed to get this from the library after a very long wait. Yep, it's disturbing! loved it and hated it in equal measure!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Ah, fantastic!

[@janmorin41]

I just finished this morning. What an incredible read if hard to stomach at times. Anyone have any suggestions for a similar read?

[@Deep_in_the_Reads]

Cows by Matthew Stokoe is far more disgusting and weird than Tender is the Flesh, but if you can find it and stomach it, its wacked-out brutality is definitely worth trying. And it has a lot of similarities to Tender is the Flesh!

[@janmorin41]

​@Deep_in_the_Reads thank you!

[@parlabaneisback]

Haven't read the book, but eating meat isn't necessary so I'm puzzled why the loss of it seems to be so devastating. Let them eat quorn.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It's a fair point. And that is one thing (plant-based alternatives to meat) which isn't really examined at all in the book.

[@davidmajor5393]

Very good and thought provoking book

[@Snailslow69]

You make it sound like the same general universe that Piers Anthony's In the Barn is in. It may come to that. The problem I have is if/when it does, will they use clones or 3d printers or will people in power get to choose who deserves to keep living as the case may be.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah, I think cloning raises all kind of difficult moral issues

[@susanburgess820]

Read most of this book. Gave up because I couldn't take it any more🤢🐈‍⬛👏❤️

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That's understandable, it's not an easy read

[@abakashi6202]

This book is only in english?

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Well it was originally in Spanish

[@owenleal]

The book is honestly really slow but the ending makes it all worth it.

[@jdsantibanez]

I like it's original name more: Cadaver Exquisito (Exquisite Cadaver)

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That is a good title. They probably changed it because another well known book had used it over here (and funnily enough I’m reviewing that one next week!)

[@TangibleReads]

Def a disturbing book but not as bad as i expected. Didn't expect the political aspects

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah the politics was interesting

[@allisterwhitehead]

I found the subtext around the meat industry just a little too obvious. We've already lived through eras of unspeakable savagery every bit as gruesome. Eating humans en masse is too large a leap without any explanation other than "we've run out of animals". The story lacked any real connection to genuine cruelty or crude self interest. Personally, I couldn't feel pain in the authors words. Instead, the book did speak to the detached bleakness of a life without reward. An existence motivated by little more than survival.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I do agree with that - it did feel like a leap to me, but once I'd got over that I enjoyed the book a lot.

[@allisterwhitehead]

​@@CriminOllyBlog I tend to throw out the sheer entertainment value when to me the main concept is either flawed or just clunky. Knowing me, I'll probably read this book again, only less critically.

I felt this book was an amazing euphemism for the cannibalistic way of our society

[@bitteralmonds666]

I love this book. I have it in Spanish and English 📖📖🤔🧐

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Is there much difference?

[@bitteralmonds666]

@@CriminOllyBlog You’ll notice the title was changed in English to avoid confusion with Poppy Z. Brite’s Exquisite Corpse (Cadaver Exquisito). This was not much of an issue when Patricia Highsmith’s short-story compilation “Cadaveres Exquisitos” was titled… Anyway, as far as the translation goes, I think it was fine. I wasn’t looking for a suuuuper accurate translation; it captured the tone of “clinical impersonality.” As a first-time reader, one might be thrown off by the lack of names used - it ends up confusing the reader as to who the “he” the book is referring to. I think this was purposeful, as in this future, the individual is a meaningless concept, the way an individual cow or chicken is in a factory 🧐🤔

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Interesting! And funnily enough I’m reviewing Exquisite Corpse next week!

[@bitteralmonds666]

@@CriminOllyBlog Looking forward to it! Dennis Nilsen has always fascinated me ☠️

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@bitteralmonds666 My great aunt lived just down the road from him!

[@denisadellinger4543]

Vegans would really get a dig in in this book. Don't eat meat, eat plants.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Definitely!

[@DreamJeanne1111]

I was going to message you with this recommendation, let me preface this with saying I have read several really chilling books about Jeffrey Dahmer. But the one that takes the cake is titled the shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer by Brian Masters. A very deep psychological dive into Dahmer's life. In a latter part of the books when the everything is getting really out of control, I actually had to stop reading for a minute. It just made me woozy. That never happens. Extremely well written, with a really different approach. Brian Masters wrote a true crime book years ago that I have read about but have not obtained a copy and is not available on Kindle last time I checked. It is titled Killing for Company. I'm pretty sure it's about the guy that lived on the third floor apartment and killed women and tried to preserve them and would dress them up and sit them in his living room and watch TV with them and have tea parties I guess. I'll get my hands on it someday. I pretty much buy exclusively Kindle eBooks now. But if the print was large enough I will go for the real deal. But honestly it's not that available at a price that I would care to pay. You want to read something creepy, read this.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I'd not heard of the Dahmer book, but Killing for Company I do know about (but haven't read). Funnily enough the book I'm reviewing next week features two killers who are modelled on Dahmer and Nielson (the book Killing for Company is about). Thanks for watching!

[@DreamJeanne1111]

@@CriminOllyBlog I'm going to take a guess at the book you are planning to read. Is it The Echo Man by Sam Holland? I have it waiting in my Kindle library and the description sounds similar. No need to thank me for watching, thank you for reading and for doing these book reviews. I'm always looking for a good read.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@DreamJeanne1111 It's not! It's Exquisite Corpse by Poppy Z Brite

[@apolloniusbeitsman5444]

And yet I still think eating meat is good.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It is tasty

[@TheFadingMan]

I just bought this book

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Enjoy!

[@JasonFuhrman]

Loved the book

[@CriminOllyBlog]

There's so much about which is great

[@herrmoreira]

Her name is Agustina, not Augustina:)

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Oh my gosh! I’ve been getting it wrong the whole time!!

[@wendyvilla2904]

💚🖤

[@tr1ntty656]

I genuinely hated this book. It’s so horribly written. Filled with bad shock factor. Horrible world and character building. I love gruesome horror and disturbing things but this was just such a dumb read for me. It’s 200 pages and barely at that. There’s almost a chapter every page and the ending you can see coming from a mile away.

[@paulaj7860]

Factory farming is horrific in real life. This seems like low-hanging fruit for a horror novel.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Fair comment!