Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

An Emotion of Great Delight by Tahereh Mafi

27 reviews

creatingavery's review

dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Tahereh Mafi has truly some of the most beautiful and heartbreaking prose I have ever read. I was holding onto every word in this story. This book was HEAVY but I couldn’t put it down. I was so invested in the characters. It wrecked me in the best possible way, and I don’t think I will soon forget this book and the world it showed me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Islamophobia, Mental illness, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Car accident, Death, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Medical content and Physical abuse

courtneyfalling's review

emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was so beautifully written but so sad and introspective and left me hollow inside. It reminds me a lot in tone and lyrical style of Nina LaCour's We Are Okay, in terms of how I felt while reading. The inconclusive ending is heartbreaking. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Grief, Islamophobia, Medical content, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

ceecee9093's review

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Grief, Islamophobia, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, and Self harm

Minor: Car accident, Cursing, and Suicide attempt

bananaberrybun's review

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Racism, Toxic friendship, Religious bigotry, and Grief

runi98's review against another edition

emotional sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm, Racism, Mental illness, and Islamophobia

Minor: Bullying and Toxic friendship

janial58's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

This was beautifully written, yet incredibly sad! Wish we got to explored more situations because many things were left open at the end. However, I don’t think it takes away from how emotionally painful this novel was to read at times. Gorgeous writing! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Religious bigotry, Toxic friendship, and Self harm

mezzano's review

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

After I had my heart ripped out when I read A Very Large Expanse of Sea, I needed to give Tahreh Mafi's advertised heartbreaker a try. My takeaway? An Emotion of Great Delight benefits greatly from dropping the reader directly into Shadi's life at its worst. The events of 9/11 are clear in everyone's mind and deeply affect the Muslim communities that Shadi interacts with, setting an already anxious and disheartened tone for the story. The feeling of stress builds as we learn more about Shadi's personal experiences. Shadi is grieving the loss of her brother and ailing parents but she must still grow from failing relationships and difficult subjects at school. The feelings that Shadi goes through are rightfully dramatic, and with everything that she has on her plate, her urge to avoid further drama and conflict is relatable. After all, who would want to orchestrate an earthquake on brittle soil? I was amazed by Mafi's ability to write a full story with a satisfying ending when the story itself only covers a couple days.

Despite the clear trauma that the outside world has placed upon Shadi, I appreciated that the historical notes did not detract from the nuances of Shadi's struggle as a teenager. Shadi's Muslim identity was effortlessly woven in the narrative and yet was not used as a mechanism for pity. Shadi instead grappled with her faith after repeated trauma, and questioned her ability to trust others as a result of the discrimination she faced over the past year. Shadi's personal issues and the crux of the story wasn't about 9/11. It was about whether or not Shadi should give a friend the opportunity for a romantic relationship, or force herself to remain at her current social status quo. While external factors such as her family posed challenges for Shadi, at the end of the day, this novel is about Shadi's own growth. Shadi shines in this story, even when she feels she's about to break. She's allowed to solve her own issues, even as the world and others have their own to figure out. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia, Self harm, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Racism

Minor: Xenophobia and Police brutality