Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa

46 reviews

nicoleisalwaysreading's review against another edition

medium-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual assault, Rape, Abortion, Confinement, Hate crime, Violence, Gun violence, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, and Grief

nineinchnails's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

this was another heartwrenching book from abulhawa. there's something about the way she weaves a story that really draws me in. just like Mornings in Jenin this deals with some very topics, so it was hard to read huge chunks in one sitting. despite being a work of fiction it's very clearly grounded in and inspired by real historical (and current) events so it's hard to "enjoy" this for its story without feeling an immense sense of grief for the countless victims of israel. the main character was initially fairly detached from and unmoved by palestine, and experiencing her (re)discovery of her homeland was incredibly touching. the writing in general was beautiful, and both the setting and the pacing were very intriguing. despite all the horror and trauma the characters find community with one another and i found myself almost forgetting how painful the rest of the book was at parts. 

i particularly enjoy more character driven novels so while i noticed a change in pace later on, i didn't ever feel like it dragged before that point - this might be a slight issue for some readers. i'd recommend this to anyone and everyone but there is a big focus on sexual violence in the first part of this novel, so i think it's worth checking the trigger warnings before you pick this one up.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Grief, Colonisation, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Physical abuse, and Misogyny

Moderate: Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Animal death, Religious bigotry, Death, Child death, Deportation, Infertility, Adult/minor relationship, War, Xenophobia, Torture, Gun violence, Classism, Abortion, and Bullying

Minor: Death of parent, Homophobia, Antisemitism, Vomit, Miscarriage, Islamophobia, Cancer, Racial slurs, Infidelity, and Ableism

Prostitution/Sex work

twitchywitchy314's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

This book was a beautifully gut wrenching read. Stories of what it's like to live as a refugee, to live under siege and occupation and of resistance and of love that endures despite brutal oppression. A must read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Sexual violence, Violence, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Rape, Islamophobia, Forced institutionalization, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Genocide, Physical abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Death and Homophobia

crawforl's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Violence, Torture, Hate crime, Gun violence, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Abortion, Sexual violence, Sexual content, War, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Murder, Islamophobia, Sexual assault, and Racism

lentils's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring sad tense

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Sexual assault

elviraqc's review

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Vomit, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, War, Torture, and Gun violence

readandfindout's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

Style/writing: 4.5 stars
Themes: 5 stars
Characters: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4.5 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Abortion, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Rape, War, Confinement, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Homophobia, Gun violence, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Grief, Sexism, Torture, and Racism

holmahoney's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Colonisation, Gore, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Abortion, Genocide, Medical trauma, Racial slurs, Cancer, Islamophobia, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Racism, Torture, and Physical abuse

serendipitous_mess's review

challenging emotional reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

An absolutely gripping story. Abulhawa is an artist with her words, and manages to capture a humanness in her characters that is heart-breaking.
I have nothing in common with the main character, and haven't been through even half of the tragedies she lives through, yet her feelings of displacement, her wish to find a balance between fighting for something she believes in, and her wish to have a small, quiet life, her finding the joy in nature, art and small human acts of kindness, her development of seeing the world in black and white to finding nuance and beauty in everything is so real.

the only downside is that i found the ending a little rushed. and how tragic it is that we cannot have a truly happy ending. Free Palestine ❤️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Colonisation, War, Gun violence, Racism, Sexual violence, and Violence

Minor: Homophobia

mybestfriendisabook's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

was hooked immediately!! i was doubtful if i would like it looking at the first page but it had an intriguing start with the MC which told me this character was going to be interesting. i loved how easy, smooth, and digestible it was to read - these are my favorites. i finished in 2 days, was reading until i couldn’t stay awake anymore. i would love a second book that continued the story but now i see why it’s not necessary as the ending showed the reality of her life.

touches on the occupation, resistance, romance, friendship, family, patriarchy, grief, and, undoubtedly, much more. had some really great quotes. learned more about the occupation of Palestine. 

i loved how bold the MC was and the life she lived. it made for a very interesting journey. idk why this is marked as slow-paced, it’s definitely medium and maybe even fast! (edit: submitted ticket to change to medium-paced) i found myself referring to the glossary often when needed, it’s interesting to learn. lots of stuff packed in made it worthwhile. 

the physical book format also helped in the smoothness - good page feel and font styling. love the cover too

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Confinement, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, War, Colonisation, Murder, Sexual assault, Grief, Gun violence, Rape, Homophobia, Infidelity, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Abortion