Goblinhood: Goblin as a Mode

by Jen Calleja

As formally inventive as readers have come to expect from one of the most daring writers around, and as wild and tricky as its subject matter requires, Goblin as a Mode  presents us with a series of essays and poems that playfully, artfully propound Jen Calleja's theory of 'goblinhood'——a theory that takes in all aspects of pop culture from film, tv, literature and art as well as the author's personal and original examinations of grief, lust, family histories and the physical fact of living in the world as it is.

Goblinhood  is a perpetually and variously curious, visceral addition to Calleja's remarkable oeuvre.

Genres: Nonfiction, Essays

171 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 19, 2024

Reviews

[Elin Skottene · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have never read a book where I thought "This should really have been a video essay" more than this one. This collection of essays and poems was a surprise gift from my partner (who has affectionately referred to me as a goblin on more than one occasion), and I was tentative due to my aversion to non-fiction when reading for pleasure, and not school.
I found the book somewhat difficult to get into, with references to things I had no idea about, only to be swept on to the next run-on sentence filled with tangents and lengthy asides (often in parentheses that would fill in more wit, but less merit towards to arguments of the essays). I felt like I was being thrown from page to page with little to no idea what we were discussing half the time, because this book feels like a discussion the entire way through. This book is the equivalent to asking a friend who you haven't seen in months about their thesis. They are very clearly ready to tell you everything, but they're making some pit-stops along the way.
That's not to say that this book is bad, just different from a typical essay collection in that it tackles so many ideas that some things get over explained, while others feel left in the dust. If you like the movie "Labyrinth", you'll get plenty of anecdotes about it (and I swear everyone mentioned was somehow in the Dark Crystal and its prequel). But when discussing antisemitic undertones of goblins or the inherent ableism of "goblin mode" it fell a bit short for me, or unbalanced when compared to the humor the book conveys for 80% of its pages. There are some serious moments, but there is either not enough humor to bring levity to the subject matter, or too much, leaving the arguments to feel unserious and flippant about the severity.
For me, the book clicked when I decided to read sections I found crazy or funny out loud to my partner. When spoken, the author's prose is fun and bouncy. I found her way of writing to sound like a conversation that had been spoken into a notes app and transcribed. And through reading her work aloud, I enjoyed it a lot more. Weird clunky sentences become an impassioned rant on subject matter that feels near and dear to the author's heart. Tangents and off hand jokes feel like talking to a casual friend as they weave their way through the meat of their arguments.
To read this book, I recommend you find a friend, put on some fun music and get some snacks. Read pieces to each other and revel in becoming cave-dwelling goblins together.

[Magda Harper · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a difficult book to review because a) I always somewhat struggle when it comes to non-fiction and b) the things I loved the most about this book are also the things I disliked the most about it.

Goblinhood is an essay collection interspersed with poems on the figure of the goblin and how pervasive it is in (pop) culture. The essays are best described as rambly streams of consciousness, packed with pop culture references. Calleja tries to help you there: you know X? X that was in Y? But also in Z, you know, with A? You know A? And if that does not ring a bell, you'll be furiously googling people and films the entire time.

Calleja admittedly wrote this book for herself and it shows. It sometimes feels like you are in a very intense one-sided conversation with a friend who won't ask you how you've been before dunking a massive amount of information on you.

Perhaps the disjoint nature of the essay tickled something in me as a researcher. Perhaps I envy Calleja's freedom, her carefree, opulent, (self)indulgent writing. Ultimately, no matter how I feel about it, her endeavour inspires me.

I loved and hated these aspects in equal parts, leaving me confused but happy to have taken the journey. Perhaps that messy ambivalence is part of the goblin mode of being.

[George Tompkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Destroy the grotto/move back to Swindon!

[wolfgang · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a completely delicious read, invigorating and tangibly inspirational - can’t wait to talk about this at book club. Still don’t know what exactly a goblin is though.

[connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

'According to this logic, we're all goblins but usually cover up this part of ourselves for fear of putting people off, in all kinds of relationships. What do I fear will happen if I showed everyone - both new and familiar - the goblin behind the mask? I never used to give a toss.'

[Enya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grotty, grubby, gobbling green goblins, golems, gnomes and ghouls. Just how I like them.
Did not know 99% of the numerous film and TV references in this book but still felt gruntled (which I learned through this book is an actual word rather than just someone forgetting the prefix dis-). Sometimes a not-so-good time when talking about cannibalism (ew), or when the author called out my own attitude to consuming literature indirectly by reflecting on her own relationship with consuming media: "stories are safe spaces to have adventures in the safety of your own home, but they can trick you into thinking that consuming them is living instead of applying the messages you find in them in your real life." How dare! The nerve! The world is scary, I don't want it!

[Izzy Ellis · Rating 2 out of 5]

a collection of essays on being feral and whatnot. was kind of hard to follow in places due to the external references being made, and while they were deffo going places, i was not always along for the ride. some nice points made here and there tho that sort of caught me off guard, but i sort of hoped they'd get fleshed out more

[leaf ⭐️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bisher hab ich mich nie mit Essay-Büchern verstanden, aber dieses hat mich amüsiert, inspiriert und beschäftigt. Besonders Gobble und Gorge haben‘s mir angetan

[Beele · Rating 4 out of 5]

succession references? too many cooks? is this a book or jesse shankly?

[Zahin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joyful nonsense. A bit of me.

(Only 3 stars cos I am so removed from all of the pop culture references I didn’t know what she was talking about most of the time. But still a delicious read)

[jay daniells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Getting to know Jen Calleja’s doppelgänger was an absolute hyperactive free fall down well of culture. I loved it.
Everything is a goblin.

[Evan · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I liked:

-The author’s preferred world of pop culture is one clearly very similar to mine, and having only been published last year it was cool to read such modern references. Every other sentence I was like ‘haha - that’s true, they are like a goblin!’
-The chapter on clowns and mischief was really effective
-The closing chapter on Grotto bumped my view of the rest of the book up when considering it as a coping mechanism with the death of her mother and the perils and comforts of cocooning
-Her voice and writing style are very distinct and comfortable and I don’t think I’d have any hesitations reading more work from her in a different topic/form




What I didn’t like:

-This is largely a piece of referential art writing without much analysis or structure, instead hyperactively bouncing between different connections without time for breath. They were all interesting points superficially, but they weren’t afforded any meaningful reflections
-Any time I didn’t get a reference my eyes would just glaze over and there was no attempt made at making it understandable for the unfamiliar reader. Happened frequently but never for long thankfully
-It was fun but there was so much missed opportunity in this. If it had even tried to be a bit more academic it would have absolutely killed, or even if it had just attempted to be less impulsive and scattered it could have been a useful sort of index in itself
-Felt like a lot of this was expanded upon unnecessarily and rather weakly. Less is more, such as with the original pamphlet, or more is more, such as if this would have just been a video essay as another reader pointed out

[Daniel Salinas Córdova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought provoking essays on various topics, ranging from AI to grief, from food & hunger to humour and sex, all revolving around the image/archetype of the goblin.

I enjoyed the book. It is quite unique and wild and you do get a sense of Calleja's inner world, but, as someone else mentioned in their review, many of the essays could work better as video essays, accompanied by images or clips of the many, many references from TV, movies, memes and pop culture the author is constantly bringing up - something that at times can clog up the reading experience, specially if you're not familiar with them.

[Adri · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s like Jen Calleja says herself: “writing this book feels, to me, like indulging in, no, relishing a cream bun. All for me, but I let you take a bite.” I really enjoyed three of the six essays, knowing the many references, following her through a labyrinth of hyperfixations. Other parts were harder to get into, I found myself skipping a few pages about tv show character relations that were hard to follow without knowing the reference. That didn’t make me enjoy the book less though. It’s a heartfelt, nerdy text that I really adore.

[Annette Morris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seemingly random ramblings, mainly about films and TV series, where the goblin is the 'baddie' or: "Anything that behaves mischievously and in it's own best interests, that is bold and all body, could be a goblin." Including oneself it seems. A bit whacky and wild and, I suspect, mischievous but I do enjoy her sharp, lively and who-gives-a s**t writing style.

[diamond jaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

never have I cared more for someone emptying out their pockets of shiny things and lint

[Oak · Rating 4 out of 5]

tangy

[Phillippa O'Shea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely soul bearing stuff. Not your average read.

[apryl]

could not have loved this more if i tried; at times felt like it was downloaded from my own brain.

[William K.Z. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bizarre concept, but one help pretty firm thought the whole book and culminates in a pretty emotional and nicely tied up conclusion!

[Jack Kirby-Lowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I particularly enjoyed the index, which just reads 'Goblins - pages 1-177'

[Josephine · Rating 4 out of 5]

WE’RE JUST NORMAL MEN

[Kat]

i cried

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Toad bakery mention ‼️‼️‼️‼️ anyway this was great

[Tom B Brookes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally given me the theoretical underpinning for getting black out on White Claws