Bellies
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 | |
| Author | Nicola Dinan |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Literary fiction |
| Publisher | |
Publication date | 1 August 2023 |
| Publication place | England |
| Pages | 368 |
| ISBN | 1-335-49088-4 |
Bellies is the 2023 debut novel of British-Malaysian writer Nicola Dinan. It won the 2024 Polari First Book Prize and was a finalist for that year's Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction.[1][2] Its audiobook edition was narrated by Nathaniel Curtis and Octavia Nyombi.[3]
Set in London, Bellies follows the story of Ming and Tom, two lovers who meet at a drag party, both dressed as women. Ming begins to transition and accept herself as a trans woman. Tom, a gay man, is less attracted to his partner as she transitions and Ming ends the relationship. Ming writes a play about the breakup, angering Tom.
Themes
Bellies is told from the perspectives of Tom and Ming, beginning with Tom for the first four chapters. Dinan wrote irony and foreboding into the first chapter, visible to the reader but not to Tom. She "wanted to offer these initial chapters as grounds for contemplation once Ming reveals that she’s trans".[4]
The novel focuses on the relationship between Tom and Ming as they grow up and learn more about themselves and how they relate to others.[5] A main theme is the "unknowability of others", which Dinan states is a common theme through much of her work. She explains this unknowability as a combination of what one is unable to see and what one refuses to see.[4]
Dinan stated that some of her biggest writing influences were Rachel Cusk and James Baldwin. She thought her works would be more directly compared to those by Bryan Washington, Brandon Taylor, and Torrey Peters, and felt grateful for their impact on the literary landscape.[6] Reviewers have also compared the book to Sally Rooney's Normal People.[7][8]