Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce

6 reviews

betherinahq's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

I loved this book! The two main characters were so loveable and their unlikely friendship was just so wonderful to witness developing over the pages. 

I love how Rachel Joyce has this way of writing such uplifting fiction without being too twee or trite. I think it’s because the main characters, while loveable, carry a sadness with them that we all do with every life experience we unlock. 

Like Harold Fry, she uses the “journey” style story to get these two women, who were born in an era where women didn’t travel the world in search for rare beetles, to reconcile their pasts and become empowered. 

A really good read! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Fatphobia, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Torture, Deportation, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, War, Classism, Colonisation, and Animal death

dorsetreader's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Blood, Classism, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicide attempt, and Vomit

Minor: Animal death

aargot1's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Death, Stalking, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Mental illness, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide, Gun violence, War, Torture, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Homophobia

annieliz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

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

5.0

I loved this book. It's about friendship, and finding your place in the world as an individual- and as a woman. This is the book I've been longing for that I didn't know i needed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide

Moderate: Blood, Suicide, Stalking, Miscarriage, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Death of parent, and Animal death

hollygon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Suicide, Murder, Blood, Medical trauma, Gun violence, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Body shaming

Minor: Sexual content, Torture, and Infidelity

bookstolivewith's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

Miss Benson’s Beetle by Rachel Joyce follows the story of Margery Benson as she sets out to do what no one ever thought she would: find the Golden Beetle of New Caledonia. Encountering a new setback in every direction, she is accompanied by Enid Pretty, who, despite her bright personality, has a “pretty” big secret. So will they find the beetle, or was this all just too much for Margery to handle? (TW: suicide, miscarriage, death, stalking & PTSD.)

I was not initially loving this one and it took me a while to get into. However, I ended up really enjoying the overall story because of how it addresses (Western) womanhood — its assumptions and expectations vs its realities and desires, for the most part. This book is populated with different “types” of women and you really feel for most of them, even when they do something horrible. Even the men in this book are affected by this expected role of (British or Western) womanhood, and the story shows how men are done a disservice by expected gender roles, especially in the wake of a traumatic world war.

It’s not the best book I’ve ever read but it is totally different from what I expected and different from other things I’ve been reading lately. It’s a love story between self and others, as well as a story about women learning to love other women, forgiving their transgressions and the strength women have to move forward (maybe juxtaposed against men who are stuck in the past? I don’t know, that may be too analytical).

If you’re looking for something different that’s also a bit of a woman empowerment book, this might be for you! I think this is probably also a great book for book clubs, as there’s lots to discuss. Miss Benson’s Beetle out November 3rd (but it’ll still be there post-election)!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Miscarriage, Death, and Animal death

Moderate: Blood, Excrement, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Violence, and Vomit

Minor: Sexism and Misogyny