RaveThe RiveterElisions, hiccups and portmanteaus abound in this novel, but to focus on the syntactical novelties would be to neglect this story’s heart … A Girl Is a Half-Formed Thing is a coming-of-age story told through one Catholic family’s struggle to cope with trauma … McBride again and again allows readers to confront those moments imbued with embarrassment and, later, regret … The most painful—and the most poignant—facet of this novel is the relationship McBride creates between the narrator and her brother, who she addresses directly (‘you’) throughout the book.
