The part of the plot that was shark related was kind of okay. But, unfortunately you get like 1% shark, then 74% BS, stupid townie crap and marital problems/midlife crisis. Then, finally you get more shark, but it’s a little lackluster, imo, and maybe “too little too late”, since by then I had already grown to hate the book. The end was definitely anti-climactic, especially compared to the film. This is one of those rare cases where the film is far better than the book. I only finished it, bc I wanted that Ocean Horror badge, dammit! It’s horribly dated as well. Sexist, racist and bigoted for sure, but also just how the characters were written and the prose itself. This did not, at all, age well. 😬

Know My Name is a book I will never forget.

I think the first thing I want to say is: I admire Chanel Miller so much. I admire her for writing this book. For returning to moments that must have been incredibly painful to revisit. For putting words to experiences that so many people are forced to carry silently. For continuing to fight, even when the people and systems that should have protected her failed her.

Know My Name is not an easy book to read. It is heartbreaking, infuriating, and exhausting. But it is also one of the most powerful memoirs I have ever read.

One of the things that stayed with me the most was the sheer amount of energy Chanel had to spend simply trying to be heard. Not just during the trial, but afterwards too. She had to fight to be seen as a person rather than a headline, a case, or a symbol.

And that is what makes this book so painful: the fact that she had to be this strong in the first place. It is exhausting to constantly celebrate survivors for their bravery and strength when the reality is that they should never have been forced into a position where they needed to be brave just to have their experiences acknowledged.

Chanel writes about that exhaustion so honestly. The anger, the grief, the loneliness, the moments where she didn't know how much more she could give. But she also writes about love, friendship, kindness, and the people who showed up for her when everything felt impossible.

Her writing completely captivated me. I don't usually read memoirs, but I found myself highlighting so many passages because she has this incredible ability to describe emotions that feel almost impossible to explain. The way she uses imagery, the way she reflects on her own experiences, the way she lets herself be vulnerable, it all made this book feel incredibly personal.

There were moments where I didn't feel like I was just reading her story. I felt like I was standing beside her: at the party, in the hospital, at home, in the courtroom. Not as someone looking in from the outside, but as someone listening.

And I think that is the most important thing this book does.

It asks us to listen.

Not just to Chanel, but to every survivor whose voice has been ignored, questioned, or taken away.

What I appreciated most is that Chanel never lets herself become only what happened to her. This book is about sexual assault, the justice system, and the ways society fails survivors, but it is also about a person. A person who loves, laughs, gets angry, makes mistakes, builds relationships, and continues living.

She reminds us that survivors are never just their trauma. They are entire people. They have names. They have stories.

And so many people never get the chance to tell theirs.

I am so grateful Chanel Miller got to tell hers.