What do you think?
Rate this book
Mirrorstage
A raw and profound novel in verse about mental health, addiction, queerness and shame that explores ideas of hybridity and identity.
Following their discharge from hospital, Mirrorstage follows its narrator on a road trip through the grey, liminal landscapes of modern Britain. As they pass graffitied bus shelters, construction sites and flooded motorways, factories and high-rises, the narrator’s internal and external journeys begin to converge, leading them down paths they have been trying to avoid: the mental illness and substance use that led them to the inpatient ward, the uneasy balance of their own gender identity, their troubled relationship with their estranged father, the perils and pleasures of the queer scene, and the shame that has haunted them throughout their life.
Woven around the psychoanalytic concept of its title, Mirrorstage is an experimental fable exploring the boundaries of selfhood and literary forms, told in fragments of prose and verse that are equal parts heartbreaking, sexy, and witty.
Following their discharge from hospital, Mirrorstage follows its narrator on a road trip through the grey, liminal landscapes of modern Britain. As they pass graffitied bus shelters, construction sites and flooded motorways, factories and high-rises, the narrator’s internal and external journeys begin to converge, leading them down paths they have been trying to avoid: the mental illness and substance use that led them to the inpatient ward, the uneasy balance of their own gender identity, their troubled relationship with their estranged father, the perils and pleasures of the queer scene, and the shame that has haunted them throughout their life.
Woven around the psychoanalytic concept of its title, Mirrorstage is an experimental fable exploring the boundaries of selfhood and literary forms, told in fragments of prose and verse that are equal parts heartbreaking, sexy, and witty.
96 pages, Paperback
First published March 12, 2026
187 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Review of advance copy
This is so achingly beautiful.
Please read this. I am begging and pleading and besmirching you all to read this.
The prose feels so raw and honest, but so precisely crafted. Every sentence is considered and created to tell a wonderful story, not one word in here is surplus.
I am simply in awe.
"I take a cutting
of my consciousness &
let it propagate
on its own
into
poems"
note/edit: Goodreads is saying I got a review copy, and just want to clarify that is not the case. The bookshop I picked it up in must have put it out early and I am very blessed that they did because I might not have found this masterpiece otherwise
Please read this. I am begging and pleading and besmirching you all to read this.
The prose feels so raw and honest, but so precisely crafted. Every sentence is considered and created to tell a wonderful story, not one word in here is surplus.
I am simply in awe.
"I take a cutting
of my consciousness &
let it propagate
on its own
into
poems"
note/edit: Goodreads is saying I got a review copy, and just want to clarify that is not the case. The bookshop I picked it up in must have put it out early and I am very blessed that they did because I might not have found this masterpiece otherwise
April 7, 2026
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Diversity: depictions of mental health , body dysmorthia
Queerness: Queer Mcs
Associated Song: Falling Infinite by black math
This book was an interesting , but in all honesty im not sure if i understood it. This is definitely the type of book that youll need to read multiple times to understand it ( or i may just be dumb) Read on my commute so maybe ill try and read it all in one go next time
There are some really striking quotes in this short book and im glad I picked it up from gays the word ! I look forward to reading it for the second time
Diversity: depictions of mental health , body dysmorthia
Queerness: Queer Mcs
Associated Song: Falling Infinite by black math
This book was an interesting , but in all honesty im not sure if i understood it. This is definitely the type of book that youll need to read multiple times to understand it ( or i may just be dumb) Read on my commute so maybe ill try and read it all in one go next time
There are some really striking quotes in this short book and im glad I picked it up from gays the word ! I look forward to reading it for the second time
April 6, 2026
extremely beautiful, incredibly moving
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews