Hello!
The YA Book Prize 2020 Shortlist and The 2020 Booker Prize Longlist have been announced and it’s that time of year to get reading. My bedside table and Kindle are stacked up and ready to go!
My first read, Meat Market by Juno Dawson, is from the YA Book Prize 2020 Short List about the fashion industry, its attraction and iniquitous underbelly.
Meat Market follows the journey of sixteen-year-old Jana Novak (an average teenager from an estate in London) through the treacherous world of modelling. Scouted at Thorpe Park for her androgynous looks and height, Jana is propelled into a whirlwind of fashion shoots, travelling and worldwide fashion weeks. Forced to choose between the lure of money through modelling and sixth form college, Jana opts for the former and embarks on a journey that takes her further and further away from her family, friends and herself. Her friends Sabah, Laurel and boyfriend Ferdy (Kai Ferdinand) oscillate in and out of Jana’s life initially keeping her grounded in reality, but as the novel progresses the distance between them grows as does Jana’s dependence on anti-anxiety medication and sleeping tablets.
Dawson systematically cuts away the glamour of the fashion industry and life of the models exposing raw truths: long hours, grotty accommodation, jet lag, eating disorders, drug abuse, sexual abuse and the dehumanising effect of the industry.
You would expect the novel to follow an arc of doom and gloom with our protagonist, Jana, self-destructing. However, the journey Dawson takes us on is one of hope, with Jana finding courage, strength, friendship and most importantly, herself, as well as exposing the fashion industry’s darkest secrets.
Written from the first-person point of view, we have an intimate knowledge of Jana’s life, her loneliness and confusion. This is enhanced by alternating the first-person narrative of past events with short interviews in the present. The opening interview of the book:
‘ – What am I supposed to say?’
‘ – Well, why did you want to make this film?’
‘ – It’s time, I think.’
sets the scene for the first-person narrative to catch up to this moment. The narration is interspersed with texts, newspaper articles and a celebrity review providing the reader a momentary opportunity to observe events from an outside perspective creating a concrete link to the real world. Our world. This makes the events feel not only tangible but frighteningly realistic. Reference to specific magazines, locations in London and around the world anchor the story in reality. Jana’s voice is clear, distinct and entirely relatable with Dawson capturing the essence of a London teenager through both dialogue and internal monologue. Jana’s opening thought, ‘Why are men such trash?’ is simple and brutal establishing the foundation on which Dawson builds her story.
Dawson’s gaze on the modelling industry in Meat Market is a call for greater regulation to safeguard the health and safety of models around the world.
Meat Market is a great read to kick start the nominations. The rest of the YA Book Prize Shortlist 2020 has a lot to live up to – very much looking forward to reading another from the list!
Key themes: identity, mental health, abuse, power, ethics, drugs, money, vulnerability, glamour, loneliness, courage, friendship and love.
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The Gold Shoe Writer 