Book Review: Body by Harry Crews
A hulking tale showcasing the extremes of bodybuilding
The freakish, obsessive, and destructive world of bodybuilding is at the forefront of Harry Crews’s 1990 novel Body. Just like Crews’s other novels, he manages to highlight a new cavalcade of freaks that collide in the Deep South.
Body is an intelligent deep dive into how and why human beings develop an obsession with ours and other people’s bodies. Shereel Dupont, formerly Dorothy Turnipseed — our protagonist — was an unassuming secretary from Waycross, Georgia. That is until she meets Russell “Muscle” Morgan, an ex-male bodybuilder. Russell, now a gym owner and personal trainer, makes her his personal project. He changes her name legally to Shereel Dupont, starves her of food and drink, forces her into a strict workout regimen, and so on. The goal is to win the world, more specifically the Ms. Cosmos bodybuilding contest. Win the contest and you will gain glory, fame, and money. All their hard work is put into jeopardy, however, when unexpectedly Shereel’s family arrive at the Blue Flamingo Hotel, where the contest is held. Her raucous redneck family, comprised of: Mum, Dad, sister Earline, two brothers Motor (who is afflicted with an overgrowth of body hair) and Turner, plus her former fiancé Nail Head (a psychotic Vietnam Veteran). Despite being a favourite to win the Ms. Cosmos contest, Shereel must compete with fellow frontrunner: Marvella, who is being coached by Wallace the Wall, Russell Morgan’s former bodybuilding rival. Shereel being a natural bodybuilder and Marvella being an anabolic steroid abuser. The two of them are pitted against one another all the way to the end. An ending that is both tragic and hardcore.
Throughout the novel, our cavalcade of freaks demonstrates an eclectic array of desires, in relation to the human body. Crews articulately proves how beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This is a recurrent theme in the novel. A perfect example would be the sub-plot of Earline and a male bodybuilder, Bill ‘the Bat’ Bateman. Earline is grotesquely overweight, yet she has perfect smooth skin. Her weight problem, coupled with her unblemished (blank canvas) skin, symbolizes ‘freedom’ to Bill ‘the bat’. The kind of freedom he has denied himself all his life. Bill, despite being shorter than average, has cultivated an elite physique and a terrifyingly huge back that looks like a bat’s wings due to its size. Both share an eating disorder, though on extreme opposite ends of the spectrum. The odd couple fall madly in love, which is the happier ending compared to the main plot’s heartbreaker finale.
The mentality of winning at all costs, regardless of the consequences, in sports or life in general is reinforced time after time in Crews’s prose. Body proves why this mentality breeds a certain type of freak, that when analysed, is no different to the cliché carny bearded woman or three-legged man. Shereel Dupont is a strong female protagonist that breaks free of her family and coaches’ chains. The closer she edges to victory, the more dominant and confident she grows. Whether a mental or physical freak is displayed throughout the story, the two are inexorably linked. Is this book politically incorrect? Yes! Is this book riddled with stereotypes? Yes! Is this book filled with outlandish drama? Yes! Does this book have a phenomenal ending? Yes! In my opinion, great prose must have all these traits. If you are looking for a new transgressive author to read, Harry Crews is your man.