Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

18 reviews

stillunderqualified's review against another edition

3.75

challenging dark emotional reflective tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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It left me empty like the planes filled with Buffalo bones. 

This book was brutal. It plots along and ends in such a hollow place you can't even cry. I feel angry at it because I don't understand the point but that's just it.  Sometimes you don't and I'm choked up now for all the tragedy and horror and pointlessness of it all. There was beauty in spots and the journey felt so alive at the end but each death was blunt and brutal and shocking. You couldn't love them for they were so flawed but how could you hate them? It felt like a journey of life with patches that felt stable and understandable torn into pieces in moments. 

If I had more of an inkling I'd talk about the brutalist poetic prose or the moral complexity or the hostorical lens but I feel so emptied out by the story that I don't want to anymore. I was so hooked that I couldn't be bothered to stop and write and now here I am without the desire. 
If that doesn't say something about Lonesome Doce I don't know what will. 

P. S. The pigs were my favorite part

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Infidelity, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Excrement, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, War

Minor: Ableism, Drug use

seanml's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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McMurtry gives such a realistic depiction of the characters in the story that they are more realized in three paragraphs than the main character of a series might be in three entire books. Even characters doesn't feel like the right term sometimes because they just feel like people. People that make bad decisions and keep making them, or contradict themselves constantly. McMurtry's writing doesn't follow arcs as much as it does the natural way of things. It only goes to serve the dreary nature of the novel, but at times it does give its little moments of cheer. 9.5/10.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child death, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Blood, Pregnancy, Alcohol

erynlasbelin's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Infidelity, Mental illness, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, War

tgaddie's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Murder

deadeye's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Hate crime, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Trafficking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment

katjoyphil's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Murder

derschnauzbart's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous emotional

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Racism, Kidnapping, Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Grief

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Slavery, Pregnancy

caitlin_bookchats's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective sad slow-paced

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I don't really know how I feel about this yet. Sorry!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Rape, Xenophobia

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Medical content

Minor: Ableism, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Slavery, Cannibalism

8 or more characters die in the course of the book, there is occasional use of the n-word to describe black cowboys, there is a lot of talk about fear of specific tribes and American Indians generally, references to the Texas Rangers "civilizing" Texas by chasing all the tribes out, and one particularly brutal outlaw is an American Indian. Two of the four female characters have a background as or spend some time during the book as prostitutes and this is discussed fairly frankly but without flowery language or heavy detail.