a reader is left to pick through pieces to decipher a (w)hole from her parts.

As Rachel said, this work is a compilation of just about everything we've looked at thus far. Not only that, but the concept that lies at the heart of this work is a good summation of what we've been learning--this idea of deformity, breaking down and arranging the "normal" or "expected" into something new or strange or even frightening, bringing to light the underlying question of what is deformity and the suggestion that deformity is inherent in life, inherent in our own selves. Also, again stealing Rachel's thoughts, the ways in which the reader is actually inserted into the work at times is a new and interesting technique. There was one page I looked at that actually had blanks to insert your name in, as well as other people in the room, in addition to other information--I felt like I was playing Mad Libs. Reading that I had been showcased as a freak of nature was both thought-provoking...and kind of hilarious. This interactivity really immerses the reader in the work in a way that none of the others (with the exception, perhaps, of 88 Constellations) have, and as such serves as a good model for our own work.

And now, I have an uncanny moment to share: I read page 34, which was one of the various definitions for "deformity." At the end of the page, the route I chose instructed me to write a number on my hand between 1-250 and go to that page. I randomly picked 73 (and yes, I really did write it on my hand) and flipped to that page. It was another definition of "deformity." Well, a mirror image of it. For a second, I thought it was the mirror image of the exact page I just left, which would've been even creepier. Regardless, the doubling completely threw me off for a moment, but when I realized what had happened, I was pretty excited about it.