In a world overrun with mindless entertainment, media written with no clear motive or heart, clearly made as a synonym for quick cash, K-Ming Chang is a lighthouse. Her work is inspired and meaningful, unique and weird. She's a master in relaying magical realism, folklore, mythology, culture and girlhood packaged in her beautiful prose and symbolisms. After Organ Meats and Gods Of Want, I'm still dying to pick up Bestiary. She's an auto-buy author who never disappoints.

K-Ming Chang writes in stunning, lyrical passages that are also just deeply disturbing. What does it mean to be tethered to another person? Body horror, obsession, ties that bind. This isn't easily digestible but that's not a bad thing. It won't be for everyone. I have visceral, physical reactions to Chang's writing.

Anita is a young bully and abuser. Her friend Rainie lets her get away with it. They both suffer. This, coupled with an obsession with stray dogs (who may or may not be women) and excrement, is the TL;DR of this book. While the elements of magic and magical realism are interesting, there's just honestly too much abuse and shit in this book for me. Is the point that women are dehumanized? That abusers start young? That if we get lost in dreams, the real world vanishes for us, and we from it? Maybe all of these things, but despite some incredibly original writing, I can't really recommend it.

Another weird and wonderfully written story by K-Ming. I was so excited when I saw she had a novel coming out. I have been a fan of her short stories and Organ Meats did not disappoint. There were so many themes interwoven throughout this story of friendship and the struggles of being a woman. Such a bold book but I wouldn't have expected anything else!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC (my first!)

I’m a huge fan of K-Ming Chang, I’ve read all her books. In general, my favorite thing about her writing is her creative and poetic use of language, which pops off the page. Reading this felt like coming back to an old friend, yet I still experience wonder at her ideas and turns of phrase.

These books are heavy magical realism, and in Bestiary I had a hard time following sometimes. This book has some improvements in structure and craft, most notably the use of multiple narrators, that made this feel more like a novel where I was actually invested in the plot. Part of the challenge of a magical realism book narrated by a very credulous child is that it can come across as just regurgitation of myth and imagination, and here that is successfully avoided.

The themes of Chang’s work are always around dislocation, mythology and history, and girlhood. The main plot, between Rainie and Anita, is about bonds between people and what they mean (and how that can be different to each person), and is used to demonstrate how history/myth is tessellated between families. The stories complement and conflict but are only complete together.

I’d like to touch on the symbolism, because the language does give any given section many meanings. We have woman-headed dogs or dog-headed women, trees (esp sycamore and banana), red thread, an island that flips between the top and bottom, orchids and organs. Blood and hair. These are used to bring in both factual history (Chang is the only writer I’ve read on Taiwan’s indigenous people) and the concept of one’s family or peoples history (the chapters narrated by the chorus of dogs). Men are rare and women are myths, but also very real, and also a metaphor for the colonization of the island.

Altogether, this is her best book yet. In the acknowledgements she mentions that she considers these three works a triptych of sorts, and I agree. I’m not sure how much my reading experience is improved by the context of having read her other books. However, if you only read one. I would recommend this one. Content warning for poop and rot and general grossness.

*My review for this book will go live on Good Reads on 10/10.

This is one of the strangest books I’ve ever read, and that’s saying something. I was going to shelve it at first, because I didn’t think I’d have the focus required for such an experimental novel right now, but I didn’t want to give up on it so I gave it another shot. I’m certainly not opposed to surrealist fiction and I enjoy it on occasion. (“Fever Dream” comes to mind.) The more I read, the easier it was to vibe with. Like a strong alcoholic drink with exotic flavors you aren’t used to, but after a few sips you start to feel it.

Most of the other reviews for this book say that it was difficult to understand what was going on, and I agree. There were times when the writing seemed like it was on the verge of accomplishing something very poetic and other times where I felt like I was wasting my own time reading paragraphs of nonsense. (A specific example would be when the stray dogs were “speaking” to the girls in a sort stream of consciousness interview format.)

I won’t sugarcoat it: this book is gross. “Visceral” is definitely a good word for it. Among other things, there’s a lot of talk about feces, specifically and gross imagery in general. If you really love dogs, maybe don’t read this. There are vivid descriptions of stray dogs suffering in various ways and surreal depictions of dogs giving birth to human babies, etc. This is one of those books that you can smell, and not in a good way. There’s even a family legend at one point that involves many girls collectively trying to fart into a river to remove its reflective surface. There’s so much content involving bodily substances that it almost feels gratuitous rather than purposeful.

I might be an outlier here, but Anita’s love for Rainie felt a bit abusive and possessive to me. I won’t elaborate for the sake of spoilers, but it seemed like a strange relationship to glorify.

There WERE full chapters in the book that I enjoyed. Anything involving dreams, all the weird stuff with Rainie’s “dogtooth,” and the ending. There were many beautifully crafted sentences scattered throughout. I think this author absolutely has talent and writes from a unique perspective. I’m glad that I gave this a second chance, but it was a bit of a challenge to read overall and took a lot of concentration.

Trigger Warnings: animal violence/death, bodily fluids/substances

K-Ming Chang has done it again!!! ORGAN MEATS is such a strange delight. The dream-like story of two girls and their lineage as dog-headed women. The chapters are short, and read almost as stand-alone pieces to the mythos of these dog-women. Sentences are diamond-sharp, perfect. Thanks to the publisher for the e-galley!

Creepy haunting beautiful and confusing. I didn’t know what was going on, but the prose was so beautiful I didn’t care.

Not all things are made to be easily digested. Some things need to be swallowed and let to ferment, and change us from the inside out—meaning born of sugars and gas and rot, internal radiance defying structure or naming but requiring time and patience. This novel feels like that. It is not focused on plot or character but on feeling, experience, and memory. If you crave structure or plot or traditional logic you will be left hungry at the end of this meal. What is offered is deep and dense, language dripping all over itself, metaphors mixed to the point of knotted threads that bind us to the invisible burdens and joys living in the bodies of others. There is no rational sense here, but a dream logic that, if you are willing to fall into it, is mesmerizing. The language and the interiority and imagination are fanciful and coarse at the same time. Ultimately, there is a story here of ownership: ownership of our bodies of our youth, of our lineages, and of our hearts. It is a story of melancholy and whimsy and what it means to find meaning in another, to be bound by ties deeper than blood, more liberating than wings.

All that is to say, this novel challenges its reader. Having already read K-Ming Chang’s short story collection “Gods of Want,” and feeling like those short stories all combined into an imagined, amalgamated biography of love and loss and humanity, I knew what I was getting into with this novel. Sometimes it felt like the surrealism that works so well in short story format drew thin here, taut, but never to the breaking point. There was always enough heart to hold things together even as real-world logic ceased to be of any utility. This novel will challenge you to peer into the depths of a stray’s yawning maw and find there a mirror to reflect the shards of your own humanity, your own connections, your own longings. It can feel circular and meandering and feverish at times, easy to get lost in. Some will enjoy this type of discovery, others frustrated by it, and that will really be the marker of how much you enjoy this novel. I know that even when I wasn’t sure if I was fully grasping the deeper meanings being offered I was enjoying the language and imagery, the overwhelming of the senses that comes from lush prose that feels like poetry. I was able to trust that meaning would come, as the story sits in my belly and develops, and for me that journey and process was really enjoyable.

I want to thank the author, the publisher Random House Publishing Group – One World, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book for review. The book is fantastic, bizarre, and at times hard to figure out what exactly is happening. The writing is superb, visceral, and truly unique. I will warn readers that the book is a little gross (frequent discussion of fecal matter, blood, organs, etc.) so this might not be the book for everyone. However, if you love surrealism, books that are just plain strange, then this is the book for you. The only critique of the book is that's hard to understand what's happening throughout the story. Parts of it just don't make any sense, and I found it difficult to fully comprehend the story.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for.the Advanced Reader's Copy!

I don't think there will ever be a world where I don't love K Ming Chang's writing style. There is something so fluid, fun, and endlessly inventive about the way they approach Folklore. Organ Meats, which may be their longest project to date, is an ever evolving story of two queer friends, exploring gender, sexuality, and family ties. If you like taking the long view, this is the book for you.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader copy.

This book was gorgeous with its luscious prose and imaginative power. The whole story felt like a fever dream you have just woken out of which is completely the type of book I love. K-ming Chang has the power to write flashing short chapters that make you feel like you always want more as you keep reading until you reach the complete end. I had a great time.

Reading this book felt not only like a fever dream, but more specifically like being half-awake within a nightmare with no idea how to wake up. The stream of consciousness style of writing was as difficult to follow as a dream in of itself, and I found myself balancing between enjoying the surrealism and wishing for more of an anchor in plot and storyline. My favorite aspects of this novel were the parts where our narrator talks about her Abu’s life and story, and I also loved how the split narration had you always wondering what was real and what was imagined. As dense and difficult and grotesque as this book sometimes was, I found myself not caring if I “understood” what I was reading. I feel that this is a book you read not to understand but to devour, and one you take several sittings to digest the contents. Chang is a force to be reckoned with, and there is no doubt in my mind that this author can WRITE. Lyrical, disturbing, dynamic and obscene, this is a book to go into hungry and with zero expectations about whatever it is you think you picked up.

“the center of summer, soft with rot, Rainie and I decide to be dogs.”


Organ Meats is about two young girls (who are descended from dogs) and their complicated relationship.

From the description alone I knew this would be strange (and I love strange) but I didn’t realize it was surrealism- and it ended being too strange for me. There was so much beauty in the imagery while at the same time a lot of disturbing content, and that juxtaposition was compelling.

However, I gotta be honest and say I had no clue what was going on for most of the book. You probably aren’t supposed to (?) but so often I felt like I was reading gibberish.

This is not to say the writing wasn’t incredible - because even though it wasn’t fully for me I can see the artistry. There were stretches where I would feel like I had a hold on the characters or the story, then I would quickly feel like I was in a maze. I’m sure this disorientation was intentional, but I can’t say it made for the most enjoyable reading experience.

I have not read anything else by this author yet and didn’t realize this book is connected to Bestiary and Gods of Want. If I had, I definitely would have read those first.

Organ Meats is an incredibly unique piece of surrealist fiction that explores female friendship, companionship, mother daughter relationships, girlhood, freedom, and grief. It was not my favorite just because of my lack of understanding of what was going on, but I’d definitely recommend trying it!

“I go to sleep with my ponytail or two of my braids gripped in my fist so I’ll have a tether to hold on to, a self to come back to. But I’d let go if it means reaching you.”

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review*

This is my first K-Ming Chang novel and I wish I read her first two works first. I read in the acknowledgements that this is the last piece of her mythical triptych and I think I would have appreciated this book better if I read these books in order of Bestiary, Gods of Want, and lastly Organ Meats. This is also my first surrealist book and had no idea what to expect. To be honest, I was confused most of the time, I wasn't sure if things are literal or metaphorical. One thing is for sure though, K-Ming Chang is a good writer. I love her prose, I don't know how she made dog spit, feces, and other human and animal secretions sound beautiful, it's honestly mesmerizing. As for the themes, there is so much to unpack. I think I need to let this simmer and ruminate on the themes more. I merely scratched the surface on female bodily autonomy and freedom. This deserves a reread and I think I'm going to read her first two books first. I'll edit this review once I've let this one sit and have my thoughts in order.

I will post the edited review on my instagram (@eurydicereads), goodreads, and storygraph closer to the publication date (within the first half of October) as I plan to read Bestiary, Gods of Want and then do a reread of Organ Meats to fully milk the book.

Chang writes unique and creative stories.

i may not have completely enjoyed the reading experience, but i was very immersed in Chang's beautiful prose. it was very atmosphere and intriguing, though it would be a lie for me to say that i understood everything. it was so imaginative you'd have to be on a certain mood to truly understand what Chang is doing.

it was a strange experience reading this and it's not completely terrible! i will surely try Chang's other novels.

Anita and Rainie are best friends as children. They spend all their time with stray dogs, pretending to be their own little dog pack themselves. Anita feels so deeply that she and Rainie are meant to be together forever, and tie red-strings around them, symbolizing their everlasting connection and marking a way for them to return to each other. Rainie moves away eventually, and Anita falls into a decade long sleep, until Rainie returns and helps Anita find her way back to consciousness.

"And you chose to come back to me, Abu says, but Anita shakes her head and says to Rainie, You cut me open. I promised to scar you to see you, but you didn't need a scar. You didn't even need skin. You built me from within. I home in you."

The writing in this is absolutely amazing. Every sentence read like poetry, it felt like I was wading through a dream. I loved that aspect of it, and the surrealism of it all. The concept of this book is so intriguing, made more so by the writing.

I especially enjoyed the parts spoken by the dogs themselves, the dogs speaking about their heritage in the Q&A chapter. The lore presented in this book is so interesting. Anita and Rainie weave their origin together based on stories told by their parents: women-faced dog ancestors and banana ghosts.

That being said, it was such a slog to read through. I'm sorry to say this book wasn't for me. I liked the story and the characters well enough, but I wasn't really invested. I had to power through the second half of the book to finish it. I feel so conflicted, because the author said this was the final part of her mythical triptych in the Acknowledgements section, and I'm so curious to see what the other two are about. I just don't think I can go through this again though.

This book is everything I love about K-Ming Chang's work—luscious, almost painfully physical imagery, the way she uses stories and myths, that subtle sense of humor threading through all her work. Organ Meats has all that and reads closer to Bestiary to me than her short fiction. IMO Organ Meats feels like a novel-in-flash, with each section being roughly flash/shorter short story length and could possibly be read independently from the novel as a whole. Verdict: if you’re a fan of K-Ming Chang, you’ll enjoy it. If you aren’t, you probably won’t.

I am unsure if I fully grasp the complexity and nuance of this novel. What I can definitively attest to is the lyrical beauty of this book. I held a lot of cognitive dissonances as I read beautifully constructed horror scenes. This is a book that I will have to revisit in the future, but for now, I am letting it simmer.

I'll update this once my thoughts solidify and it gets closer to the pub date but I LOVE weird shit. I love ambitious unique writing. I like letting things simmer a bit because I get the most *wrapped up* with 4 - 5 star ratings so I want to make sure this is something I'd genuinely recommend, purchase, potentially re-read, assess the merits of a book after I've had time to think critically before blasting it all over my social media accounts. Thank you so much for gifting me this ARC in exchange for a (soon to be more detailed) review.